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What is a "stability period" under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)?

For the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), the short answer is that a “stability period” is the period you are guaranteed coverage. Once the UM System offers you medical insurance, you are guaranteed to have coverage for a 12-month stability period provided you enroll for insurance in the first 31 days of your stability period. In other words, you cannot lose your insurance coverage from the UM System even if your average hours worked drop below 30 hours per week, as long as you enroll within the first 31 days and assuming you do not separate from the university.

Keep in mind that you may have to enroll in a medical plan more than once per year when you are first offered insurance. That’s because your new-hire stability period varies, tracking with your new-hire measurement period, but it does not necessarily track with the ongoing measurement period.

The new-hire process is as follows:

Process Measurement Period Administrative Period Stability Period
  12 months when the UM System measures variable-hour employees’ work hours. Beginning and end dates vary based on the date an employee starts work. The UM System reviews the measurement period data and prepares offers to those variable-hour employees qualifying for medical insurance coverage. 12 months following the administrative period in which an eligible employee cannot become ineligible for insurance, assuming they enroll within the first 31 days of the stability period and do not separate from the university.

The new-hire measurement period varies based on your hire date, but the ongoing measurement period is always October 4 of one year to October 3 of the next year. If you intersect the middle of the ongoing measurement period, then you will receive an offer to enroll in medical insurance more than once per year.

Visit the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) page (umurl.us/ppaca) for more information.

Reviewed 2020-11-04