Employee Benefit Plans
Family Changes
Family changes such as new children, changes in marital status, and children attending post-secondary education all affect your benefits. Learn what you need to do to keep your benefits updated.
Now is an important time for you to update your information. In this section we answer frequently asked questions about family changes.
New child in your family
Congratulations! To add a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to designate your new child as a beneficiary or make other changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Congratulations! Your adopted child may be eligible under your plan. The plan defines a child as a person who is under 21, unmarried, and dependent on you for financial support. To add a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to designate your new child as a beneficiary or make other changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Your stepchild may be eligible under your plan. The plan defines a child as a person who is under 21, unmarried, and dependent on you for financial support. To add a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to designate your stepchildren as beneficiaries or make other changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
The child that you are a guardian for may be eligible under your benefit plan. Please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form” and send a copy of the court order confirming guardianship to ebp@3sHealth.ca to confirm eligibility.
The children of your common-law spouse may be eligible under your benefit plan.
To have your common-law spouse’s children covered under your plan, your common-law spouse needs to be an eligible dependent on your plan. To add a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
A common-law spouse is a person you have been living with in a spousal relationship for the past 12 months, forming a common-law relationship.
Where both a legal spouse and a common-law spouse exist, coverage for the legal spouse will cease immediately once coverage becomes effective for the common-law spouse.
Yes! The plan still covers your children. If their other parent has benefit coverage, both plans will coordinate benefit coverage. The plan of the parent whose birthday is chronologically first in the calendar year will provide primary coverage.
Submitting a claim to more than one benefit plan to recover as much of your expenses as possible is known as “coordination of benefits.” Typically, this coordination happens when your spouse’s group benefits plan pays part of a claim and then you submit the remaining amount to your plan. However, having more than one insurance plan does not guarantee that a claim will be paid in full between both plans.
Here are some general coordination of benefits guidelines to get you started:
- Claims for yourself: Submit a claim to your plan before sending it in to your spouse’s plan.
- Claims for your spouse: Submit claims for your spouse to your spouse’s plan first before sending it to your plan.
- Claims for your children: If the claim is for a child’s expenses, submit it to the plan of the parent with the earlier birthday in the year and then to the plan of the parent with the later birthday next.
- Claims for students: When submitting claims for a student, submit through the student’s school plan first, then the parent with the earlier birthday’s plan, then the parent with the later birthday’s plan.
- If you are unsure how to make claims when parents are separated, contact Canada Life.
- If you have multiple plans, start with your full-time employer’s plan, then any part-time employer’s plan, and then any other coverage you carry such as private insurance or a retiree plan.
- Individual benefit plans, such as the GMS 3sHealth Retiree Benefits Plan, are secondary to all employer-sponsored group benefit plans.
Looking for more information on coordination of benefits? Get the answers you need for your family situation by referring to the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association’s Guide to the Coordination of Benefits. This document sets out common guidelines for coordination of benefits.
Change in marital status
Congratulations! To add your spouse as a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to designate your spouse as a beneficiary or make other changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Did you move? If you have access to Gateway Online, simply change your address there and we will receive your new address.
If you work at an employer without Gateway Online, simply contact us by phone or email to update your information.
Did you change your last name? If you have access to Gateway Online, simply change your name there and we will receive your new last name. If you work at an employer without Gateway Online, simply contact us by phone or email to update your information.
Yes! Your common-law spouse is eligible under your plan. A common-law spouse is a person you have been living with in a spousal relationship for at least the past 12 months.
Where both a legal spouse and a common-law spouse exist, coverage for the legal spouse will cease immediately once coverage becomes effective for the common-law spouse.
To add your spouse as a dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to designate your spouse as a beneficiary or make other changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
To remove a spouse or dependent, please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to make changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Please complete the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Watch - Naming Beneficiaries is Easy
We are sorry for your loss. Please contact 3sHealth as you may be eligible for Dependent Life insurance for your spouse.
You will also need to remove your spouse as a dependent. Please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to make changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
My child is attending post-secondary education
For your child to be eligible under your benefit plan, they must be unmarried, under 21 years of age, or attending an accredited college or university full time while between the ages of 21 and 25.
Children 21 years of age or older that are dependent upon you for support by reason of a mental or physical disability can remain under your plan for as long as you retain your eligibility. In order for a dependent child with a disability to be eligible past age 21, you will need to complete an “Application for Over-age Dependent Coverage” form. Canada Life will review the application for eligibility. If the application is eligible, the plan will cover your dependent child. Please contact 3sHealth if you require the form. Please note that the over-age dependent coverage form may not be a one-time process and Canada Life may review the situation on an ongoing basis depending on the nature of the dependent child’s medical condition.
When a student is going to school out of the province or out of the country, they will have to apply with eHealth Saskatchewan to ensure their health card remains active for the duration of their time away. If their health card remains active, then they will still be eligible under your plan if they meet the criteria of being a student.
For your child to be eligible under your benefit plan, they must be under 21 years of age or between the ages of 21 and 25 and attending an accredited college or university full time.
The coverage ends on the student’s last date of classes, and they will need to return home for a minimum of 24 hours to have coverage reinstated for the next school year.
Please note that costs for prescriptions or other medical services outside of Saskatchewan may be different than the reasonable and customary amounts covered in Saskatchewan.
Example: A dependent child going to school in Calgary gets a prescription that costs $42. The reasonable and customary amount for that same prescription in Saskatchewan is $25. Therefore, the plan would only cover up to $25 for the claim.
Please contact 3sHealth to request a letter confirming that that your benefit plan covers the student.
More coverage information
Coverage for aging parents or other family members
The benefit plan does not cover parents.
The plan does not cover siblings. However, if a court has granted custody to you of a sibling under the age of 26, that sibling may be eligible for coverage. Please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form” and include a copy of the court order confirming guardianship to ebp@3sHealth.ca to confirm eligibility.
For your sibling to be eligible under your benefit plan, they must be unmarried, under 21 years of age, or attending an accredited college or university full time while between the ages of 21 and 25.
Siblings 21 years of age or older that are dependent upon you for support by reason of a mental or physical disability can remain under your plan for as long as you retain your eligibility. In order for a dependent child with a disability to be eligible past age 21, you will need to complete an “Application for Over-age Dependent Coverage” form. Canada Life will review the application for eligibility. If the application is eligible, the plan will cover your dependent child. Please contact 3sHealth if you require the form. Please note that the over-age dependent coverage form may not be a one-time process and Canada Life may review the situation on an ongoing basis depending on the nature of the sibling's medical condition.
Children with a mental or physical disability who are older than 21
Yes! In order for a dependent child with a disability to be eligible past age 21, you will need to complete an “Application for Over-Age Dependent Coverage” form, Canada Life will review the application for eligibility. If the application is eligible, the plan will cover your dependent child. Please contact 3sHealth if you require the form.
Please note that the over-age dependent coverage form may not be a one-time process and Canada Life may review the situation on an ongoing basis depending on the nature of the dependent child’s medical condition.
Death of a child or spouse
We are sorry for your loss. Please contact 3sHealth as you may be eligible for Dependent Life insurance for your spouse.
You will also need to remove your spouse as a dependent. Please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to make changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
We are sorry for your loss. Please contact 3sHealth as you may be eligible for Dependent Life insurance for your child.
You will also need to remove your child as a dependent. Please complete the “Employee Benefits Dependent Change Form.” Send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
You may want to make changes to your beneficiaries for your Group Life Insurance coverage. You can make this update easily by completing the “Group Life Beneficiary Designation Form.” Please send the completed form to ebp@3sHealth.ca.
Coverage for pets
No. Your benefit plans do not have coverage for pets.
Questions
3sHealth administers your Employee Benefits Plan. We are happy to answer any questions you have. This page contains our contact information.
Available below are the links to some pension providers’ contact web pages:
- Saskatchewan Healthcare Employees' Pension Plan (SHEPP).
- Public Employees Pension Plan (PEPP).
- Regina Civic Employees' Superannuation & Benefit Plan.
- All Other Pension Plans: Contact your employer or pension plan provider for details.
Available below are the links to different disability plan administrators:
Related Links
- Life Event: New Employee
Congratulations on your new role! This is an exciting time for you. You have questions about your benefits, and we have answers. - Life Event: Leave of Absence
A leave of absence requires a lot of planning. We have made the process easier for you, explaining what happens to your benefits depending on the type and length of your leave. - Life Event: Retirement
Planning your retirement? You have options when it comes to your benefits. Get answers to your frequently asked retirement questions here. - Life Event: Death
Dealing with the loss of a loved one can be very overwhelming. This section contains information on life insurance, keeping beneficiaries up to date, and what next-of-kin and executors need to know.