Dental Coverage for newly employed TAs/RAs in Winter 2016 semester

Brad WalchukUncategorized

This is an important message regarding dental coverage for new Graduate Students and newly hired TAs (or RAs in lieu) who begin their TA employment in the winter 2016 term.
CUPE 3906 provides dental coverage for TAs and RAs in lieu who i. hold and undergraduate degree and ii. hold an appointment to work as a TA or RA (in lieu) at McMaster for at least 130 hours in the current academic year.
Graduate students who are just joining your programmes and/or newly hired Classification “A” TAs for the winter term are able to enroll in family dental coverage or opt-out of dental coverage until January 31st, 2016 by filling out the appropriate change of coverage form(s) (see below) and dropping them off to our office in KTH B111.  Opt-outs and enrollment forms submitted after January 31st, 2016 cannot be processed.
The family enrollment and opt-out provisions are described in the following letter:
 The family enrollment and dependent information forms are available at the following links:
The dental opt-out form is available here:
Please note that dental opt outs require appropriate proof of alternate coverage or they will not be processed.  (For more information on what constitutes appropriate change of coverage status, please see the provisions letter that is linked above.)
Finally, please note that the family dental enrollment and opt-out provisions are only open to newly hired Classification A TAs (or RAs in lieu) and/or Classification A TAs (or RAs in lieu) who begin their academic programmes in the winter 2016 term.  (In other words, the January family dental enrollment and dental opt-out provisions do not extended to eligible TAs/RAs in lieu who were registered in September and were already contracted to work 130 hours in the winter 2016 term.)  Newly enrolled graduate students should contact the Graduate Student Association for the GSA extended health (and, where applicable, dental) coverage information by visiting http://gsa.mcmaster.ca/.
More general information on our Unit 1 dental coverage is available at http://cupe3906.org/tas-unit-1/dental-plan/
Please contact administrator@cupe3906.org wtih any specific questions regarding the opt-out or family enrollment process for new TAs/RAs in lieu.
Thank you very much and happy new year,