If you are enrolled in a USG healthcare plan, you are required to complete
certification EACH YEAR during open enrollment for tobacco use. You must
certify whether you (and your covered family members age 18+) use tobacco. Learn more about
the tobacco use surcharge and when it applies.
The 2027 Tobacco Use surcharge is $150/month. It will be applied to each
covered member (employee, spouse, child 18+). Note: one surcharge will be
applied for all children who use tobacco.
Once you enroll for 2027, remember to review your confirmation statement and make any
corrections to your surcharge status(es) by December 31, 2026 to ensure your
surcharges are captured correctly.
Remember! Even if you do not wish to make changes to your benefits
for 2027, you MUST log into the OneUSG Connect - Benefits
enrollment portal and complete your surcharge certifications EVERY
YEAR during Open Enrollment if you are enrolled in a USG healthcare
plan.
Planning to quit tobacco? That's great! Select the “Cessation”
option to notify us of your intent to quit. By selecting the cessation option, you
will not be charged the surcharge until April 1, 2027. View the
list of no-cost cessation
programs and resources available to you. Then, complete a
tobacco cessation program of your choice and notify the One USG Connect - Benefits
Call Center of your completion of the program. If you stop using tobacco products or
complete a tobacco cessation program, you must update your tobacco use status with
OneUSG Connect - Benefits at 1-844-587-4236 to avoid the
surcharge.
If you do not complete a cessation program, do not stop using tobacco or fail to
update your tobacco use status, the tobacco surcharge will be applied beginning
April 1, 2027. You may update your status at any time during the year, but the
surcharge will be removed the first of the month following the date you update your
status (e.g., status update May 15, surcharge removed effective June 1).