2025 Annual Enrollment

When we take care of ourselves, we live well and feel well. For 2025, you can earn up to $900 by taking simple actions to support your well-being.

All actions will take place and credits will be visible in Virgin Pulse (which will be renamed Personify Health in 2025).

Act now to earn $600

Save $600 on your 2025 medical plan contributions when you complete or schedule a preventive care exam with a primary care physician or OB/GYN in 2024. Once you’ve completed this preventive care activity, visit Virgin Pulse > Rewards > 2025 – $600 Preventive Care Exam Credit by December 31, 2024, to earn your full credit.

2024 credits do not carry forward

The new $600 preventive care exam credit replaces the $600 tobacco-free credit. You must complete or schedule your preventive care exam in 2024 to earn the full $600 credit for 2025.

Earn $300 throughout 2025

Beginning in 2025, you can earn up to $300 in rewards cash in Virgin Pulse, even if you’re not enrolled in Verizon benefits. Complete easy well-being activities throughout the year; you’ll find quarterly actions listed on your Virgin Pulse Rewards page in 2025. Earn up to $75 per quarter, redeemable for gift cards, charitable donations, or purchases from the Virgin Pulse store. Watch for more details later this year.

Watch for details about new family support benefits through Maven Clinic in Q1 2025. Through the Maven digital platform, you’ll have a dedicated advocate and care team, plus access to specialists and resources to support you in these areas:

• Fertility and family building
• Maternity and newborn care
• Breast milk shipping
• Parenting and pediatrics
• Menopause and ongoing care

We’re working to offer a voluntary long-term care insurance program in 2025. Watch for more information in Q1 2025.

With the higher cost of health care overall, you can expect to pay a bit more when you receive medical care. The table below shows some 2025 in-network costs for individual and family coverage in the HDP, PPO Plus, EPN and Surest Copay plans.

While the same menu of plans is available for 2025, we are expecting to make changes for 2026. We do not expect to offer the EPN plan after 2025, so now is a good time to start comparing your plan options.

To see the cost of care in each plan, check out the medical plan comparison chart. The Surest Copay plan is available to V Teamers in UHC states.

Preventive care can help save lives and costly care in the future. That’s why we cover 100% of your preventive care costs across all plans.

Beginning in 2026, we expect to discontinue the EPN plan for all members, including those who were allowed to remain in the plan when it was closed to new members in 2018. If you’re currently enrolled in the plan, you may want to review your alternatives now.

It’s a good idea to compare the amount of your plan contributions and how much you’ll pay for care in each plan. You may find that another medical plan will better meet your needs and your budget in 2025. Keep in mind that the PPO, HDP and Surest Copay plans use the same network of providers as the EPN. In addition, the PPO and Surest Copay plans have the same prescription benefits as the EPN.

We’re committed to paying the majority of your health care costs and providing you with access to the best providers, so you can get the care you need. With Verizon’s costs for health care services rapidly escalating, your contributions for medical, dental and vision coverage will increase in 2025. Our plans continue to be very competitively priced for the value they deliver, with Verizon covering 85% of the cost of enrolling in medical benefits.

Current forecasts expect the high rate of medical cost increases to continue in 2025. We’ll keep working to find ways to keep costs down and provide opportunities for you to save money. However, you should expect to see your contributions rising at a similar rate over the next several years.

See your contributions for each plan. Estimate your health care costs, and compare plan options at Annual Enrollment > Compare Next Year’s Plan Options.

Starting January 1, 2025, we’re partnering with CVS Caremark to help manage rising prescription costs and ensure you have flexibility between retail pharmacy and mail-order options to fill your prescriptions.

If you are enrolled in an Anthem or UHC PPO Plus, HDP, Surest Copay or EPN medical plan, CVS Caremark will replace Express Scripts to care for your prescription needs. This transition will enable us to provide our comprehensive prescription drug program at a more competitive price and with better technology to empower you.

Kaiser Permanente will continue to manage pharmacy benefits for its members.

More flexibility with where to fill prescriptions

Our new partnership with CVS Caremark offers greater flexibility in filling maintenance medication prescriptions through a retail pharmacy or a mail-order option. With the Maintenance Choice program, you can get 30- or 90-day supplies of maintenance medications at a CVS pharmacy, CVS Caremark mail-service pharmacy or select participating pharmacies, such as Costco and Kroger—with no difference in cost.

After three fills, penalties may apply for prescriptions not switched from 30-day to 90-day supplies through the Maintenance Choice program.

How to prepare for the transition

Watch your home mail

In December, you’ll receive a welcome packet with more information about the prescription drug plan and your new CVS Caremark ID card. You will also receive information and instructions based on your current use, including changing your pharmacy or preferred medication or how to choose a participating pharmacy for specialty medication.

If you have an active mail or specialty prescription, Express Scripts will transfer it to CVS Caremark on January 1, 2025. If your prescription is compounded or a controlled substance (e.g., pain medication or sleeping aid), please call CVS Caremark at 833.870.0272 for assistance after December 15. For retail prescriptions, simply present your new CVS Caremark ID card or electronic ID card to the pharmacist after January 1.

Express Scripts will also transfer to CVS Caremark any active prior authorizations you received from your health care provider.

Register with CVS Caremark

After you receive your welcome packet, you’ll need to register and set up your first refill order.

To set up your order, register with CVS Caremark in one of three ways:

• Go to caremark.com, select Register, and follow the instructions to sign up.
• Download the CVS Caremark mobile app, open the app, and follow the registration instructions.
• Call the number on the back of your CVS Caremark ID card, and a representative will get you started with a personalized registration email or text.

Automate your prescription refills 

Beginning January 1, access your CVS Caremark account to view open refills for any active prescriptions that are not for a controlled substance.

You’ll need to set up your first fill order before you can see the refills available for auto-refill setup. To set up your first order, call the number on the back of your CVS Caremark ID card, or log in to your CVS Caremark account, and set up your order online.

Manage your prescriptions with CVS Caremark’s digital tools

Use the CVS Caremark app or your online account to:

• Find a network pharmacy or confirm your current pharmacy is in-network
• Check drug costs
• Refill a prescription quickly

Review the CVS formulary

The formulary is a list of prescription drugs and their coverage levels. You can look up your medications on the CVS formulary.

For information about biosimilars, visit the CVS specialty website.

Prescription drug prices, especially for specialty and new-to-market drugs, are among the top drivers of rising health care costs. We are committed to managing these costs with you.

Starting in 2024 and continuing through 2028, your share of the cost for each prescription will increase slightly each year. You can continue to make cost-saving choices, such as using generic drugs over name brands and converting to mail-order delivery.

The prescription drug cost-sharing amounts for the PPO Plus, EPN and Surest Copay medical plans are listed below. Prescription drug coverage for the HDP and Kaiser plans will not change for 2025.

30-day supply retail cost

90-day supply mail-order or Maintenance Choice cost

After three fills, penalties may apply for prescriptions not switched from 30-day to 90-day supplies through the Maintenance Choice program.

If you enroll in the HDP, the amount Verizon contributes to your HSA will increase from $500 in 2024 to $600 in 2025 if you have individual coverage, and from $1,000 to $1,200 if you cover yourself and one or more dependents. You can also contribute more to your HSA, with higher IRS limits in 2025:

• Up to $3,700 if you have individual coverage (for a total of $4,300 with Verizon’s contribution)
• Up to $7,350 if you cover yourself and one or more dependents (for a total of $8,550 with Verizon’s contribution)
• Up to an additional $1,000 if you’re age 55 or older in 2025

Your 2024 HSA election will carry over to 2025, so if you want to contribute to the new maximum limit, be sure to increase your contributions during Annual Enrollment.

If you’re switching to the HDP for 2025 and are currently enrolled in the health care spending account (HCSA), you will not be permitted to set aside money in the HCSA in 2025 (but you will be able to contribute to a limited-purpose HCSA in 2025). If you have a balance remaining in your 2024 HCSA, you’ll be able to incur expenses through March 15, 2025, and submit them for reimbursement through May 31, 2025—but you will not be eligible to contribute or receive Verizon contributions to your HSA until April 1, 2025. To fully fund your HSA in 2025, be sure to use your entire HCSA balance by the end of 2024.

The IRS sets annual limits on health care spending account (HCSA) and limited-purpose HCSA contributions and typically updates those limits after Annual Enrollment. For 2024, the maximum contribution is $3,200. To automatically contribute up to any new maximum the IRS may set for 2025, select the option to contribute the maximum amount during Annual Enrollment.

To estimate how much money to contribute to an HCSA, go to BenefitsConnection > Annual Enrollment > Compare Next Year’s Plan Options > My Spending Account Calculators.

If you enroll in the HDP for 2025 and are currently enrolled in the HCSA, you will not be permitted to set aside money in the HCSA in 2025 (but you will be able to contribute to a limited-purpose HCSA in 2025). If you have a balance remaining in your 2024 HCSA, you will be able to incur expenses through March 15, 2025, and submit them for reimbursement through May 31, 2025—but you will not be eligible to contribute or receive Verizon contributions to your HSA until April 1, 2025. To fully fund your HSA in 2025, be sure to use your entire HCSA balance by the end of 2024.

Our commitment to helping you protect your loved ones’ future remains unchanged, and we continue to pay the full cost of your basic life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance.

The experience in our life insurance program over the past several years has been generally unfavorable, made somewhat worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, our insurance contract renewal resulted in increased rates. These higher rates will be reflected in your cost for supplemental life and AD&D insurance elections for yourself, your spouse or domestic partner, and your children.

The rates are based on age ranges. As you move into a new age band, your cost will increase. Your cost for 2025 is based on the covered person’s age as of December 31, 2025. See what you’ll pay for supplemental coverage.

You have the option to purchase long-term disability (LTD) insurance during Annual Enrollment or at any time of the year. Two coverage options are available: 50% or 66 2/3% of eligible pay up to a maximum annual pay of $345,000. Enrollment in this benefit is voluntary, and since you pay the full cost of coverage with after-tax dollars, any benefit you receive is not taxable. You must provide evidence of insurability (EOI) for any increase to this benefit.

To enroll a spouse, domestic partner or dependent child in coverage during Annual Enrollment or as a result of a qualifying life event, follow the prompts on BenefitsConnection during the enrollment process to add a new dependent, and select the appropriate dependent relationship.

You will need to provide documentation to verify eligibility. Instructions for completing the dependent verification will be sent to both your work email and home address on file after you have enrolled your dependent. If you do not submit proper documentation in a timely manner, your dependent will be dropped from coverage.

Having an ineligible dependent enrolled in your Verizon coverage may result in disciplinary action.

A dependent child is eligible for medical (including prescription drug), dental, vision, child life insurance and child AD&D insurance through the end of the month in which they attain age 26, regardless of student status. Coverage may be extended beyond age 26 for a dependent child who meets the conditions of being disabled under the medical plan.

Once a nondisabled dependent child attains age 26, they will be automatically removed from medical (including prescription drug), dental and vision coverage at the end of the month in which their birthday occurs. You will then be provided the opportunity to continue coverage for the dependent through COBRA.

The child life insurance and child AD&D insurance plans cover all your eligible dependent children. While medical, dental and vision coverage automatically end once your dependent attains age 26, child life and child AD&D do not automatically end. You are responsible for updating your child life and child AD&D elections once your previously eligible dependent no longer meets the eligibility requirements.

If you are an active employee in the no-coverage (waived-coverage) option for medical, dental and/or vision, and you make no changes during this Annual Enrollment, your no-coverage (waived-coverage) election for medical, dental and/or vision will carry over for 2025.

While there is no longer a federal requirement to maintain medical coverage to avoid a federal tax penalty, some states require you to maintain medical coverage to avoid a state tax penalty. California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, D.C., currently have such mandates. You should confirm with your tax advisor if such a mandate is a concern for you; additional states may add this requirement in the future.

If you are a Massachusetts resident, you must maintain medical coverage that meets specific state requirements, referred to as minimum creditable coverage (MCC), to avoid the state tax. All the Verizon group medical options available to you meet the Massachusetts MCC requirements.

If you have coverage today and would like to waive coverage for 2025, you need to choose the no-coverage option during Annual Enrollment. If you choose no coverage, you cannot enroll in coverage during 2025 unless you have a qualifying life event or as otherwise required by law.

Each year, the IRS establishes a compensation limit that is used to identify a group of employees known as highly compensated employees (HCEs). Generally speaking, an employee is classified by the IRS as an HCE for 2025 if they earned wages from Verizon during 2024 in excess of $155,000. “Wages” for this purpose means the amount reported in Box 1 of IRS Form W-2 plus before-tax deferral amounts made under the 401(k) Savings Plan, cafeteria plans and qualified transportation fringe benefits, if any.

IRS guidelines require that annual contributions toward the DCSA by both HCE and non-HCE participants are within an acceptable margin. Verizon performs an annual nondiscrimination test of the DCSA plan to ensure compliance with these rules.

Based on preliminary testing for 2024, the plan must limit DCSA annual contributions by HCEs to $2,400. If you are classified as an HCE for 2024, you will be subject to the initial 2025 DCSA contribution limit of $2,400 during Annual Enrollment. Additional restrictions may be imposed later in 2025 depending on additional testing.

Your medical options must offer certain preventive care benefits to you in-network without cost sharing. Under the Affordable Care Act, medical plans generally may use reasonable medical management techniques to determine the frequency, method, treatment or setting for a recommended preventive care service.

As explained in your SPD, preventive care benefits that must be offered in-network without cost sharing include (but are not limited to) a number of screenings (e.g., blood pressure, cholesterol), certain immunizations (including COVID-19), colonoscopies (including many related items and services, and coverage for a follow-up colonoscopy after a patient has received a positive screening test or direct visualization test), FDA-approved contraception methods, and other items and services that are designed to detect and treat medical conditions to prevent avoidable illnesses and premature death.

Preventive care benefits that must be offered in-network without cost sharing change periodically. For example, in 2025, anxiety screening in adults and an annual screening for urinary incontinence in women must be covered at no cost in-network.

The Agencies also clarified that items and services that are integral to the furnishing of birth control, regardless of whether the items or services are billed separately, must be covered. This includes coverage for anesthesia for a tubal ligation procedure and pregnancy tests administered prior to providing an intrauterine device. Contact the Verizon medical plan or prescription drug administrator, such as CVS Caremark, for more details on the types of preventive care items and services that are covered at no cost in-network.

The Affordable Care Act transparency requirements will give you access to an internet-based price comparison tool to compare prices for medical and prescription drug items and services. Upon request, this information may be provided in paper form without a fee, subject to certain limits.

The Notice of Privacy Practices for Verizon Communications Inc. Health Plans (HIPAA Privacy Notice) explains the uses and disclosures the Verizon Health Plans may make of your protected health information, your rights with respect to your protected health information, and the plans’ duties and obligations with respect to your protected health information.

The HIPAA Privacy Notice can be found on BenefitsConnection. You can view the notice and/or print a paper copy from the website, and you can request a paper copy by calling the Verizon Benefits Center at 855.4vz.bens (855.489.2367).

Summaries of benefits and coverage (SBCs), required by the Affordable Care Act, are available on BenefitsConnection. If you would like a free paper copy of the SBCs, contact the Verizon Benefits Center at 855.4vz.bens (855.489.2367).

To help you compare your health plan options and make informed choices, Verizon is required to make SBCs—which summarize important health plan information in a standard format—available to you. The health benefits available to you provide important protection for you and your family in the case of illness or injury, and choosing a health plan is an important decision.

You’ll find SBCs, health plan comparison charts and other information about your health benefits on BenefitsConnection.

The well-being program offered to you by Verizon is voluntary and available to all employees. The program is administered according to federal rules permitting employer-sponsored well-being programs that seek to improve employee health or prevent disease, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, as applicable, among others.

If you choose to participate in the well-being program, you will be asked to voluntarily complete the Preventive Care Exam Credit attestation form within Virgin Pulse. You are not required to complete this activity to receive medical coverage.

However, if you choose to participate in the well-being program, you will receive an incentive of up to $600, which will be used to reduce your medical plan contributions. Although you are not required to complete this activity, if you do, you will receive the medical plan cost reduction of up to $600.

The information from your preventive care exam can provide you with helpful insights to better understand your current health and potential health risks.

We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your personally identifiable health information. Although the well-being program and Verizon may collect and use aggregate information to design a program based on identified health risks in the workplace, the well-being program will never disclose any of your personal information either publicly or to Verizon, except as necessary to respond to a request from you for a reasonable accommodation needed to participate in the well-being program, or as expressly permitted by law. Medical information that personally identifies you that is provided in connection with the well-being program will not be provided to your supervisors or managers, and it may never be used to make decisions regarding your employment.

Your health information will not be sold, exchanged, transferred or otherwise disclosed, except to the extent permitted by law to carry out specific activities related to the well-being program, and you will not be asked or required to waive the confidentiality of your health information as a condition of participating in the well-being program or receiving an incentive. Anyone who receives your information for purposes of providing you services as part of the well-being program will abide by the same confidentiality requirements. The only individuals who will receive your personally identifiable health information are a registered nurse or doctor in order to provide you with services under the well-being program.

In addition, all medical information obtained through the well-being program will be maintained separately from your personnel records, information stored electronically will be encrypted, and no information you provide as part of the well-being program will be used in making any employment decision. The confidentiality of medical information will be maintained in accordance with Verizon policies and procedures. Appropriate precautions will be taken to avoid any data breach, and in the event a data breach occurs involving information you provide in connection with the well-being program, we will notify you immediately.

You may not be discriminated against in employment because of the medical information you provide as part of participating in the well-being program, nor may you be subjected to retaliation if you choose not to participate. 

If you have questions or concerns regarding this notice, or about protections against discrimination and retaliation, please contact the Verizon Benefits Center at 855.4vz.bens (855.489.2367), and indicate that you have a question or concern regarding this notice.

Actual plan provisions for company benefits are contained in the appropriate plan documents or applicable company policies. This Annual Enrollment page provides updates to your existing summary plan descriptions (SPDs) as of January 1, 2025. Until Verizon provides you with updated SPDs, this page is intended to be a summary of material modifications (SMM).

As always, the official plan documents determine what benefits are provided to Verizon employees, former employees eligible for COBRA, retirees and their dependents. Please note that you may not be eligible to participate in or receive benefits from all plans and programs referenced on this page.

Your SPDs and SMMs are available in the library section of BenefitsConnection, and you can call the Verizon Benefits Center at 855.4vz.bens (855.489.2367) to request printed copies free of charge. As explained in your SPDs, Verizon reserves the right to amend or terminate any of its plans or policies at any time with or without notice or cause, subject to applicable law.