When Coverage Ends
When you leave Capital One, your health benefits (medical, dental, and vision) end on the last day of the month in which you end employment. Most of your other benefits including life insurance, disability, purchased time off, your Be Well Rewards, and even your flexible spending accounts, end on your last day of employment. For more information about the ending of your benefits, please see the individual sections below.
Medical, Dental and Vision
When your employment ends, your medical, dental and vision coverage end on the last day of the month in which you end employment.
Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
Health Care FSA
When your employment ends, your Health Care FSA coverage ends on your termination date. This means you can’t get reimbursed for claims incurred after your termination date. You may be eligible to access funds for expenses incurred after your termination date under COBRA through the end of the calendar year.
Dependent Care FSA
Funds that you’ve contributed to your Dependent Care FSA can be used for eligible expenses through March 15th of the following plan year.
The deadline to submit all FSA claims is April 30th of the following year.
Health Savings Accounts (HSA)
If you participate in an HSA, you will continue to own your account after you leave Capital One, but you will be responsible for any fees charged by Anthem or the custodial bank to maintain your account. You will not forfeit any unused balance, and you do not need to enroll in COBRA to access your HSA funds. If you do enroll in the Consumer Driven Health Plan (CDHP) through COBRA, you may make after-tax contributions to your HSA while enrolled, and deduct the contributions on your income tax return. Contact Anthem for information about closing or rolling your HSA funds into a different plan.
Life Insurance Coverage
When you leave Capital One, your Basic and Supplemental Life and AD&PL coverage ends on the date your employment ends. If you would like to continue these benefits, you may have the option to port or convert coverage*:
- Porting coverage allows you to continue your life insurance benefits as a term life policy. This option is only available to associates who request to port coverage before reaching the Social Security Normal Retirement Age. The maximum amount of Associate coverage that can be ported is $1 million (Basic and Supplemental combined). In most cases, as long as you continue to pay the premiums, you can keep your term life coverage until the age of 98.
- Converting coverage allows you to convert your life insurance benefits into a whole life policy which accumulates cash value. Some restrictions may apply, but you can generally convert your full amount of coverage or excess coverage above $1 million that you could not port. As long as you continue to pay premiums, you can keep your whole life coverage for the rest of your life.
Detailed information about Portability & Conversion requests:
The Hartford will automatically mail you a Notice of Coverage Continuation, which you will need to return to The Hartford to request Conversion or Portability quotes. This form must be postmarked within 31 days from your separation date. If you are beyond 31 days of your separation date, the form must be postmarked within 15 days from the date on the Notice of Coverage Continuation. Conversion & Portability requests will not be accepted if they are received more than 91 days after your Life coverage terminates.
Upon receipt, The Hartford will issue you the requested quotes explaining how you may be able to keep your coverage and how much it will cost you. Since the amount of coverage available to port or convert is based on the coverage in place on your last day of work, The Hartford is unable to mail you a form until Capital One notifies them that you no longer work for the company. If you would like to bind Portability or Conversion coverage, please return the quote acceptance and payment to The Hartford within 15 days from the quote letter date. Conversion & Portability requests will not be accepted if they are received more than 91 days after your Life coverage terminates.
*Associates on Long-Term Disability: If you are on premium of waiver on your last day of work, you will not be eligible to port or convert coverage.
Associate Savings Plan – 401(k)
All contributions to your 401(k) stop after the pay period of your termination. If your vested account balance is over $5,000, you can leave your balance with the Capital One Associate Savings Plan.
Vested account balances of $1,000 or less are automatically paid out in a lump sum payment, and vested account balances of less than $5,000 but more than $1,000 are automatically rolled into a Fidelity IRA. Both of these distributions will be paid out the quarter following your termination from the company, unless you request a payout or direct rollover to another plan within the time allowed after your termination date. You will be sent a reminder at least 30 days before any lump sum payment or IRA rollover is coming your way.
You can contact Fidelity at 1-800-544-6666 or online at www.fidelity.com to change your distribution option or to inquire about your IRA.
Continuing Your Health Coverage Under COBRA
You may elect continuation of health care coverage through a COBRA contract. COBRA—the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act—generally allows you and your covered dependents to pay and continue your insurance under the group policy for 18 months after you cease to be an active associate. If your dependent(s) loses coverage due to your death or divorce, or because they reach the eligible dependent age limit, their coverage may be continued for up to 36 months.
If you choose to enroll in COBRA, the cost will be the full premium (both your and Capital One's portions) plus a 2% administration fee. Therefore, it costs more than what you have been paying. You may find a more cost-effective option elsewhere such as through the federal health insurance marketplace. See the current rates for COBRA.
You should receive your COBRA paperwork within 5-7 business days from the date your termination is processed. If you have not received your paperwork, please contact Anthem at 1-877-775-9393 or you may access your account online by following these instructions:
- Go to www.benefitadminsolutions.com/
- Select “Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield"
- Select “Employee & Participant Login"
- Click “Click here" to register
- If you don't yet have your COBRA account number, use your SSN
You have 60 days from your notification date or coverage end date to enroll in COBRA.
For questions about COBRA coverage see the Group Health Continuation Under COBRA information in the Summary Plan Description, or contact Anthem, our COBRA Administrator, by calling 1-877-775-9393.
Note: You may have special considerations under COBRA if you're Medicare eligible. If you're receiving Medicare at the time COBRA is elected, you can have coverage under both plans. However, Medicare becomes primary and COBRA is secondary. Therefore:
- If you enroll in COBRA and then become Medicare eligible, you will need to terminate COBRA medical at the end of the month prior to the Medicare eligibility.
- If you are Medicare eligible at the time you terminate, you may elect COBRA if you choose, but Medicare will be primary and COBRA will be secondary. You can access additional information on Medicare at medicare.gov and click on "Supplements and Other Insurance", or by phone at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
Retiree Health Care
Capital One offers access to Retiree Health Care support for associates aged 55+, as long as they have 10 years of service after age 45.
Capital One Retirees will have access to a variety of medical plans through the Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree private exchange. The choices of medical plans will be varied, with different levels of coverage, carriers, networks and/or pricing. Retirees and their dependents who are Medicare-eligible will have the choice of Supplemental, Medicare Advantage and/or Medigap plans. Best of all, Retirees and their eligible dependents will be able to work with a Mercer Benefits Counselor who will guide them in making the right choice based on their prescription and medical needs and walk them through the enrollment process.
When enrolling in a medical plan through Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree, the participants will be responsible for paying the monthly premiums directly to the carriers. Failure to pay timely will result in termination of the coverage, according to the rules of the carrier.
Retirees and/or their eligible dependents may decide to elect COBRA at the time of termination instead of selecting a plan through Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree. In that situation, the participant may only move to a plan through Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree when:
- The individual turns 65 and becomes eligible for Medicare, or
- Their COBRA continuation coverage period ends, or
- If applicable, their COBRA subsidy ends, or
- During the annual enrollment period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 1 for Medicare-eligible; Nov. 1 – Dec. 15 for non-Medicare individuals)
If a Retiree or their dependent does not enroll in COBRA or a plan through Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree at time their coverage as an active associate ends, they cannot elect to participate at a later date. Additionally, new dependents (such as new spouses or spouses previously not enrolled in a Capital One medical plan) may not enroll in a Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree plan.
How can I see my options?
If you are interested in looking at plans and rates prior to 90 days out from your retirement, we recommend checking out healthcare.gov to see the different options available. This site will give you an idea of what Mercer Marketplace has to offer.
You may contact Mercer up to 90 days prior to your retirement date to set up an appointment with a Mercer Benefits Counselor. Please know they will not have your information prior to you calling, so they will need to collect information from you. To schedule an appointment, call 1-855-207-1979, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time; deaf or hard of hearing individuals should dial 711 for Telecommunications Relay Service. Additionally, you may schedule an appointment by going to https://retiree.mercermarketplace.com/capitalone.html.
Use the checklists provided by Mercer to prepare for your Consultation appointment: For Medicare-Eligible Retirees age 65 and older, and for Pre-65 Retirees.
What to Expect Upon Retirement
Within a few weeks of your retirement, you will receive separate information regarding COBRA and Mercer Marketplace 365+Retiree. We strongly suggest that you work with a Mercer Benefits Counselor to help you decide which coverage options will be the best for you. In many situations, it may benefit you to have some coverage or dependents covered through COBRA while having other coverage through Mercer Marketplace 365+ Retiree.