Human Resources

Retiree Benefits

Eligibility

Effective July 1, 2025, benefits eligible Michigan Tech employees who retire and meet the following requirements will be eligible to enroll in the Michigan Tech Retiree Insurance:

  • Age + Years of Service = 70
    • Minimum Age = 55 years
    • Minimum years of service = 5 years
  • No break in coverage
    • Retirees who opt out of Michigan Tech's Retiree Insurance coverage at the time of retirement will not be eligible to re-enroll at a later date.
    • If a Retiree has opted out of a coverage for one benefit but elected other coverages, they may not opt back into the opted out coverage at a later date.

Employees considering enrolling in Retiree Benefits may read more about the available options and current plan rates in the menu below. To enroll in coverage, employees who meet the above criteria should reach out to our benefit services team benefits@mtu.edu when planning their retirement date.

2026 Retiree Health Plans

Retirees or Dependents under age 65

Effective January 1, 2026, Retirees and their dependents under age 65 can elect to remain on a Michigan Tech Blue Cross Blue Shield of MI Retiree HuskyCare 1 or Retiree HuskyCare 2 health plan. These plans mirror existing employee plans. The Retiree and dependent would be responsible to pay the full cost of the plan until age 65. Plan costs will be updated annually by December 1 for the following calendar year. When the Retiree or dependent becomes 65 years old, Blue Cross Blue Shield of MI will transition the Retiree or dependent to a Group Medicare Advantage Part D Plan.

2026 Contribution Rates for Retirees under 65
Plan Monthly Contribution
Retiree Husky Care 1
  • 1 Member under 65: $989.73/month
  • 2 Members under 65: $2,078.42
Retiree Husky Care 2
  • 1 Member under 65: $795.36/month
  • 2 Members under 65: $1670.28/month

Note: MTU COBRA participants will experience the same plan design changes and a similar contribution increase for 2026. COBRA contributions are slightly higher as they include a 2% COBRA administrative fee.

Medical Plan Coverage
  Retiree HuskyCare 1 Retiree HuskyCare 2
  In-Network Out-of-Network In-Network Out-of-Network
Annual Deductible $1,500/$3,000 $3,000/$6,000 $2,250/$4,500 $3,500/$7,000

Out-of-Pocket Max

(Individual/Family)

Deductible is included

 $3,000/$6,000 $8,000/$16,000
  • $4,450 if 1 enrollee
  • $8,500 if 2 enrollees
  • $6,000 if 1 enrollee
  • $12,000 if 2 enrollees

In-Patient Hospitalization/

Surgery

 30% after deductible 30% after deductible 10% after deductible 30% after deductible
Office Visit 30% 30% after deductible 20% after deductible 35% after deductible
Lab & X-Ray 30% 30% after deductible 10% 30% after deductible
Mental Health 30% 30% after deductible 20% after deductible 35% after deductible
Physical Therapy 30% 30% after deductible 20% after deductible 35% after deductible
Chiropractic 30% 30% after deductible 20% after deductible 40% after deductible
Massage Therapy 30% 30% after deductible 20% after deductible 35% after deductible
Urgent Care $50 30% after deductible 10% after deductible 30% after deductible
Emergency Room Visit $150 $150 20% after deductible 20% after deductible
Retail Rx
  • Generic: 10% (Min/Max) $5/$20
  • Brand: $250 deductible + 25 % (Min/Max) $20/$60
  • Generic: 15%
  • Brand: 15%

Mail Order Rx /

3 months
  • Generic: 2x's copay
  • Brand: 2x's copay
  • Generic: 15%
  • Brand: 15%

 

Retiree Health Benefits Age 65+ Group Medicare Advantage Part D Plan

Effective January 2025, Retirees and their dependents age 65 or older are eligible to participate in a fully insured group Medicare Advantage Part D (MAPD) plan through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Under this plan, Michigan Tech will subsidize a minimum of 50% of the health insurance premium paid by each retiree. Plan costs will be updated annually by December 1 for the following calendar year. Retirees or their dependents were enrolled in a Humana plan provided through Retiree First for 2025. Retirees or their dependents will be transitioned to a Blue Cross Blue Shield MAPD plan effective January 1, 2026.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of MI will be hosted a virtual presentation on Monday, November 11, 2025, detailing the new MAPD plan and answering any questions from Retirees. If you were unable to attend the presentation, the recording of the session is linked below:

BCBSM 2026 Retiree Health Insurance Presentation (65+)

Plan and Subsidy

  • Insurance Vendor: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM)
  • Plan Type: Medicare Advantage with Prescription Drug (MAPD) PPO Plan
  • Michigan Tech will subsidize a minimum of 50% of the premium paid by each member.
2026 Contribution Rates for Retirees 65 and older
Coverage 2026 Rate (with 50% MTU subsidy)
1 Member $123.92 per month
2 Members $247.84 per month
MAPD Comparison - Humana (2025) vs. BCBSM (2026)
Service 2025 Coverage (Humana) NEW 2026 Coverage (BCBSM)

Deductible

$100

$100

Coinsurance

-

20%

Out of Pocket Maximum

$3000

$3000

Office Visits/ Consultations

$10

$10

Specialist

$35

$35

Psychiatric/Psychotherapy

$40

$40

Urgent Care

$35

$35

Emergency Room

$65

$65

Ambulance

$100

$75

Inpatient Hospitalization

$165 per day (Days 1-5) copay

Deductible/Coinsurance applies

(unlimited days)

Inpatient Mental Health

$165 per day (Days 1-5) copay

Deductible/Coinsurance applies 

(190-day lifetime limit remains)

Outpatient Surgery

$125 copay

Deductible/Coinsurance applies

Skilled Nursing Facility
  • Days 1-10:
    $0 per day
  • Days 11-20: $20 per day
  • Days 21-100: $150 per day

Deductible/Coinsurance applies

Home Infusion Therapy

Not covered

New - Covered at 100%

Durable Medical Equipment

20% Coinsurance

New - Covered at 100%

Detailed Annual Physical

Office Visit cost share applied

Removes Office Visit cost share

(Covered at 100%)

Prescription Copay Tier 1/2
Generic

$10

Preferred pharmacy $10, Standard $15

Prescription Copay Tier 3
Preferred Brand

$20

Preferred pharmacy $20, Standard $25

Prescription Copay Tier 4
Non-Preferred Brand 

$40

Preferred pharmacy $40, Standard $45

Prescription Copay Tier 5 Specialty Drug

$80

Preferred pharmacy $80, Standard $85

Important Things to Know

  • You must be enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B to participate in the BCBSM MAPD Plan.
  • Put your Medicare card in a safe place in case you need it later. You will use only your BCBSM ID card for Medical and Prescription Drugs.
  • You can use any willing Medicare medical provider, regardless of if the provider is in or out of the network.
  • No referrals are needed for Medicare covered medical services.
  • You should continue to be able to use almost any retail pharmacy as BCBSM includes over 66,000 in-network pharmacies, nationwide.
  • You do not need new prescriptions for retail pharmacies. Simply show your new ID card and your refills will be processed under the BCBSM MAPD Plan.

Retiree Dental and Vision Coverage

Retirees and their dependents are eligible to remain on Michigan Tech Dental Coverage and Vision Coverage. The Retiree may elect to change from Dental Plan 1 to Dental Plan 2 or vice versa through Open Enrollment.  Benefit plan details are aligned with our employee plans and are listed below. Additional general information about the plan options is outlined on our Dental/Vision benefits page.

For 2026, Dental Insurance will move from Delta Dental to The Standard. The two dental plan options remain largely the same. Premiums have slightly increased and out-of-network coverage has changed from a Maximum Allowable Charge (MAC) calculation to a Usual and Customary (U&C) calculation. The intent behind this change is to reduce costs for Retirees and improve out-of-network coverage for plan members.

Dental Premium Rates Comparison
  2025 Premium NEW 2026 Premium
Retiree Husky Dental 1
  • 1 Member: $30.94/month
  • 2 Members: $57.52/month
  • 1 Member: $32.49/month
  • 2 Members: $60.40/month
Retiree Husky Dental 2
  • 1 Member: $28.54/month
  • 2 Members: $53/month
  • 1 Member: $29.97/month
  • 2 Members: $55.65/month

Dental Coverage

The standard network coverages listed below.

  Husky Dental 1 Husky Dental 2

Class I  – preventative –

twice a calendar year

 0% 0%
Class II – fillings, extractions, root canals 20% 50%
Class III – crowns, gold fillings, dentures 50% 50%

Class IV – orthodontic –

dependents up to age 20

 50% to a lifetime max of $1,500 Not Available
Dollar Maximum $750 per person per year $750 per person per year

Vision Coverage through VSP Vision

Vision Insurance will continue through VSP Vision with no changes to plan design or premiums.

Premiums
  • 1 member: $9.03/month
  • 2 members: $18.06/month

VSP Vision

(In-network benefits shown)
  • Office visit: $10 copay - once per calendar year
  • $200 allowance for lenses or contacts – once every calendar year
  • $200 allowance for frames – once every 2 calendar years
For members without prescription eye wear Non-prescription sunglasses or blue light filtering glasses covered in full every 2 calendar years

Retiree Life Insurance Coverage

Retirees are eligible to continue their MTU life insurance coverage based on the following monthly rates:

Retiree Age Range Rate per $1,000

50-54

$0.43

55-59

$0.72

60-64

$0.92

65-69

$1.48

70-74

$2.60

75+

$4.26

Life insurance premiums are invoiced in accordance with the Retiree’s elected billing preferences selected on their enrollment form. If no enrollment form is received for 2026, invoicing continues at the option elected during past year enrollments.