AlightRHS does not offer all available Medicare plans. For example, AARP/UHC plans are not on the AlightRHS website, but -- as indicated on the website -- they are available by request. Kaiser is not available through AlightRHS. HP and HPE do not control which plans AlightRHS carries.

As with any insurance sales agency, carriers and HMOs pay AlightRHS for selling and renewing policies. AlightRHS Benefits Advisors receive sales commissions for plans they place in your cart.

Re-enrollment rules: "...if you elect to not participate in HP retiree medical coverage (or coverage through Alight Retiree Health Solutions, if you qualify for Medicare)... you will not have an option to re-enroll in retiree medical coverage (or coverage through Alight Retiree Health Solutions...) during future annual enrollment periods. Instead, you will be eligible to re-enroll only within 31 days of losing coverage under another employer’s group medical plan or within 60 days of losing coverage purchased from a public health insurance exchange. Losing coverage under another employer's group medical plan could include the loss of your own coverage through another employer or the loss of coverage under your spouse's/partner’s employer's plan." --HP Enrollment Guides

(Alight Retiree Health Solutions -- formerly Aon Retiree Health Exchange -- is a separate company from Alight Benefits Administration, which runs the HP Benefits Center.)

If you qualify, an individual Medicare plan may be subsidized by the company via an RRA or RMSA -- but only if you purchase it through AlightRHS. This is implied -- but not explicitly stated -- in the Enrollment Guide.

Plans and pricing:

- Premiums are based on the competitive market. They reflect the underlying cost of care across all the customers of a particular carrier's plan.

- Whether a given brokerage, such as AlightRHS, carries a particular plan is between the brokerage and the insurance carrier. Some carriers, such as Kaiser, do not use sales agencies. (BTW, as far as we can tell, HP/HPE do not directly pay anything to AlightRHS.)

- There are government specifications for open-market Advantage and Supplemental plans. A carrier may add additional features, but can't change the required basic coverage. (A common add-on is a limited membership at a gym looking to sell upgraded memberships. Even before the pandemic, the directory often included gyms that had gone out of business.)

How the payments work:

The payment process for open-market plans ensures that your subsidy is not reported to the IRS as taxable compensation.

- You pay list price directly to the carrier or HMO.

- If on the Pre-2003 program, you are reimbursed via a special HP "Retiree Reimbursement Account." (The RRA has no connection with any other account that you might have, such as a Health Savings Account, or the Medicare A and B premiums you pay via Social Security deductions or direct payments.)

- If on the current Retiree Medical Program, you are potentially reimbursed via your HP Retiree Medical Savings Account (RMSA.)

- As with any insurance sales agency, carriers and HMOs pay AlightRHS for selling and renewing policies -- a sales commission for the initial sale and a monthly admin fee.

- AlightRHS Benefits Advisors, who hold an insurance sales license in your state, receive commissions for plans they place in your cart.

Benefits account settings:

- On your HP/HPE Benefits account, select "Alight Retiree Health Solution $0.00" as your plan -- instead of the default company group plan and price. This will cause the Benefits Center to notify Alight. (It says "$0.00" because you pay the carrier directly.)

- The plan or plans you bought are specified on your AlightRHS account -- but are irrelevant to the company, and therefore not indicated on your HP/HPE Benefits account.

Go thorough your cover letter:

- HP's personalized Pre-2003 Program enrollment cover letter for 2023 says: "As a qualified retiree, you are eligible for HP funding to a Retiree Reimbursement Account (RRA) instead of HP subsidizing your retiree medical premiums directly. If you enroll in coverage through the [sic] Alight Retiree Health Solutions, HP will fund an RRA... RRA allocations from HP are not available if you purchase an individual insurance option from sources other than Alight." --from a Typical Enrollment Letter  There is similar wording in the Retiree Medical Program cover letter

The HPAA has an informal escalation path into AlightRHS management. https://www.hpalumni.org/escalate-AlightRHS