IMPORTANT! The CUPE 3906 Unit 2 Collective Agreement Expired on August 31, 2024. We are currently negotiating a renewal agreement with the Employer. For more information, or to get involved to improve the pay, working conditions, and benefits of Sessional Faculty at McMaster, please contact mobilizer@cupe3906.org.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: September 27, 2022
Based on tentative gains secured to our Health Care Spending Account during our last round of collective bargaining, your Benefits Committee voted to expand your HCSA entitlement. These gains could not have been secured without your support and mobilization during the bargaining process.
Until August 31, 2023, Members of CUPE 3906 Unit 2 (Sessional Faculty and Hourly Rated Sessional Music Faculty working at McMaster University) may now submit up to $500 in eligible expenses, and will receive a reimbursement of 100% of the cost (to a total maximum of $500 per academic year). Previously members would receive a reimbursement of only 80% of the cost (to a maximum of $400 per academic year). Expenses incurred on or after September 1, 2022, are eligible to submit.
The Benefits Committee will review the feasibility of the increase at the end of the 2022-2023 academic year.
Please click here for a full list of HSA eligible expenses that will be covered up to the total yearly limit ($500). This list is determined by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), not us. You can also visit the CRA’s list of authorized eligible practitioners according to province, available here.
To submit a claim, please fill out the claim form, available here: CUPE-U2-claim-form-SEPT-2022
*PLEASE NOTE! If you are sending your claim in directly to Prosure via regular mail, please use the following address:
THE PROSURE GROUP
2255 Sheppard Avenue East
SUITE 202, Atria 1
Toronto, ON M2J 4Y1
NOTE: Claims must be submitted within 60 days of incurring the expense.
** Please note that prescription eye glasses are on the eligibility list–they are just listed as: “Vision devices – including eyeglasses and contact lenses to correct eyesight – prescription required.” If you are only getting the frames, you just need proof from that the optometrist that they inserted prescription lenses into the frames. (They should be able to indicate this on the receipt.)
We have returned to our on-campus office at Kenneth Taylor Hall, B111.
Unit 2 HCSA claims may be emailed to claims@prosure-group.com until further notice. Please note that you must fill out and sign the form, and submit a clear scan or image of the form and your supporting documentation. Currently, you do not need to obtain an “Authorized CUPE rep signature” on emailed claims. Please mention that you are a CUPE 3906 member in your email. Also, please make sure to hold on to your original form and receipts for at least 1 year if you submit claims via email.
Alternately, paper claims may be left in the office, or deposited in the drop box to the left of our entrance in KTH B111.
You can also submit forms via mail directly to the Prosure Group, although processing hard copies submitted by mail might result in delays during the office closure period. Please make sure that you sign your form with pen-and-ink, and include original receipts. Claims can be mailed to:
THE PROSURE GROUP
2255 Sheppard Avenue East
SUITE 202, Atria 1
Toronto, ON M2J 4Y1
Please note that there may be significant delays in processing claims that are left in our KTH B111 mailbox after March 23rd, 2020.
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FAQs
What is covered?
The Health Spending Account is meant to help members with the cost of medical, dental and pharmaceutical costs that are not adequately covered by OHIP, UHIP or the GSA plan. Eligible expenses included, but are not limited to: prescription drugs, glasses, contact lenses, eye exams, dental procedures such as crowns or bridges, casts, crutches, etc. A full list of eligible expenses is available on the Revenue Canada website here. Most members use the HCSA to cover vision-related costs that are not covered by the OHIP, UHIP, GSA or MSU plans (e.g., prescription eye wear, eye exams).
Psychotherapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, and Registered Social Workers are eligible expenses to claim via our Health Care Spending Accounts, as long as they are registered/licensed.
Not sure if an expense will qualify? Email: administrator@cupe3906.org
I only work as a CUPE 3906 Unit 2 member in the fall term. Can I submit my expenses in the winter and/or spring/summer term(s)?
Yes! As long as you are working or have worked as a Unit 2 member at some point in the current academic year (Sept 1-Aug 31), you can submit claims in the current academic year (Sept 1-Aug 31).
I have alternate health insurance. Can I use both my CUPE HCSA and my alternate insurance for the same health-related expenses? Yes, you can use both benefits. Where possible, submit the claim to your alternate insurer first. If your alternate insurance does not cover the entire cost of the claim, you can then make a CUPE 3906 Unit 2 HCSA claim for the remainder of the cost (to a maximum of $500 per academic year). Instead of the receipt, you should attach the explanation of benefits you received from the other insurer in the mail. (If no claim was paid out from your other insurer, you will still an explanation of benefits stating that the claim was denied.) Again, that functions as a receipt when you make the CUPE 3906 claim. If you are unable to use your alternate insurance first you can reverse the procedure described above and make a vision care claim first. However, since explanations of benefits are not standard issue with this type of benefit, you must email administrator@cupe3906.org to request that one be produced when you make your claim.
Does the HCSA cover my family/dependents? Yes, it can. Each member is allocated a maximum of $500 total reimbursement per year for eligible expenses. That entitlement can be applied to your dependents, but each dependent is not entitled to $500. In other words, each member can receive up to $500 per academic year to allocate within their family according to members’ discretion. The reality is we have a finite amount of money secured through collective bargaining for this fund, and we cannot afford to provide each family member $500, but we are happy to allow family members to be covered by the $500 per Unit 2 member entitlement.