Plan Definitions - OPEB mode

In the OPEB mode, benefits for both active and inactive members are determined by the Plan Definition. The Plan Definition is simply a collection of individual benefits, each of which is payable to either active or inactive members or their spouses. The number of benefits that may be included in a plan is unlimited.

The contingency initiating a benefit for an active member may be any one of the four decrements – retirement, termination, death and disability – or “in-service”, to indicate a benefit payable to a plan member while in active status. ProVal will warn you about each decrement to which the active population is subject that does not initiate a benefit. For example, if you include an active mortality table in the valuation assumptions but do not include a death benefit in your plan, ProVal will point this out at execution.

If you have several benefits initiated by the same contingency, ProVal will decide, based upon a few parameters, which benefits are paid:

The eligibility requirements for these benefits may or may not overlap. If an individual is concurrently eligible for two benefits, then both may be paid. For example, when an active member becomes eligible to retire, he/she then may become eligible for both retiree medical benefits and retiree term life insurance. See Active Eligibility for more information.
Election probabilities may be associated with one or more of the benefits. Suppose that term life insurance is included in the plan automatically for the participant but by election for the spouse (as would be typical if the member does not have to contribute towards the cost of his/her own insurance but would have to pay part of the cost of the spouse insurance). Then an election probability would be associated with the spouse life insurance, to indicate the probability that the spouse life insurance is elected. If, for example, 30% of members elect spouse life insurance, then the spouse of a future retiree will have a 30% chance of being covered by this insurance. Although having election probabilities add to 1 is common, it is not required. Also see Benefit Definitions - OPEB Mode for information about the parameter used to apply these probabilities.

The eligibility requirements for the benefits payable upon retirement have additional significance. They affect the manner in which the decrement tables identified in your valuation assumptions are used. Before the earliest date at which an active member is eligible to retire, the member will be subject to the termination decrement but not to the retirement decrement, even if the retirement rate reference table has non-zero values at the corresponding member ages. After the earliest date at which the member is eligible to retire, the situation reverses: the termination decrement “turns off” and the retirement rates begin to apply.

Plan Name is a text field for the name of the plan (and hence this Plan Definition library entry) for which benefits are defined.

Benefit Definitions lists the Benefit Definitions included in this Plan Definition. You can expand a Benefit Definition to reveal its Gross Benefit and Participant Contribution formulas along with the referenced Benefit Formula Components.

To create a new Benefit Definition and add it to this Plan Definition, click the New button.
To edit an existing Benefit Definition, double-click the Benefit Definition, or select it and click the Edit button. You can also edit Benefit Formula Components in a similar manner.
To add or omit existing Benefit Definitions, click the Add/Omit button. Check any Benefit Definitions to include in the plan and uncheck any Benefit Definitions you wish to omit from the plan.
To compare Benefit Definitions, select two or more and click the Compare button. You can also compare selected Benefit Formula Components in a similar manner.
To modify Tags for Benefit Definitions, select one or more Benefit Definitions and click the Tags button. You can also modify Tags for Benefit Formula Components in a similar manner.
To customize which Benefit Definition details are shown, click the Columns & Rows button and then choose Benefit details. You can also customize which Benefit Formula Component details are shown in a similar manner.
To sort Benefit Definitions, click on a column header. For example, click on the Member Payment Form column header to sort by payment form.
To group Benefit Definitions, drag a column header into the box above the list. For example, drag the Selection Expression column header into the box above the list to group Benefit Definitions by unique eligibility selection expression. You can even group on multiple column headers if you wish.
See Benefit Definitions - OPEB Mode for more information.

Full Eligibility

Plan Attributes - U.S. Medical coverage age, attribution service under linear proration to decrement, rounding of (U.S.) social security wage bases and covered compensation, and final average salary methodology

Lifetime and Annual Limits

Plan Constants - values for plan constants used in building the plan definition