Retiree benefits
Reed College reserves the right to change, terminate or otherwise modify any or all provisions of the following benefits at any time and for any reason.
If you qualify as a Reed retiree, you have access to one of two Reed retiree medical plans, based on your hire date.
Once you turn age 65, Medicare will be your primary insurance and you will use your Reed retirement benefit to supplement Medicare.
*Retired staff do not get additional benefits outside of the medical benefit. Access to campus amenities, including the sports center, are removed upon date of retirement.
Eligibility
To be considered a Reed retiree, you must meet both of the following:
- Age 55 or older
- Are a regular employee of the college in a benefits eligible position for at least 20 years of continuous service
- Retirees who are age 65+ are required to have Medicare Parts A and B
Spouse/domestic partner and dependent children eligibility:
- A spouse to whom you are legally married at the time of retirement
- A domestic partner whose partnership is in effect at the time of retirement
- Dependent children up to age 26
Duration of eligibility:
- Retirees will be eligible for their lifetime
- Spouses will be eligible so long as they remain married to the retiree
- Domestic partners will be eligible so long as they remain in partnership with the retiree
- Spouses and domestic partners of deceased retirees remain eligible, as do children up to age 26
Retirement for those hired prior to July 1, 2006
Employees who are age 65+ or Medicare eligible have three options.
Option 1: Kaiser Senior Advantage (KSA) plan
Our Kaiser Senior Advantage (KSA) is a Medicare Advantage health plan. The college pays 100% of the monthly cost of this plan for retirees and 50% of the monthly cost for the spouse/partner. Reed bills the retiree each month for the remaining 50% of the cost of spouse/partner coverage. If a retiree fails to pay the bill for their spouse/partner coverage for more than 60 days, Reed must remove the spouse/partner from coverage.
Option 2: Emeriti plan with Aetna insurance
Emeriti is a consortium of higher education institutions who pool their retirement medical insurance plans. Our Emeriti plan offers a choice of several Aetna medical and prescription drug plans to supplement Medicare. Each month Reed contributes to a TIAA healthcare account and then monthly Aetna premiums are deducted automatically from this account. Emeriti bills the retiree each month for any differences owed.
For the retiree, the college's contribution is equal to the cost of single party coverage of the core benefit (currently the Kaiser Senior Advantage Plan).
For the spouse/partner, the college's contribution is 50% of the cost of dependent coverage of the core benefit.
Option 3: Emeriti plan with any healthcare plan
The Emeriti plan affords the option to enroll in any healthcare coverage of your choosing. Each month, Reed contributes to a TIAA healthcare account. The retiree pays for coverage out of their pocket and submit receipts for reimbursement. In this way, the retiree's TIAA healthcare account becomes a healthcare reimbursement account for IRS-qualified medical expenses.Those who opt out at the time of retirement will not be able to enroll in a medical insurance plan offered by Reed in the future.
When a spouse is deceased
Notify the college immediately when your spouse passes away.
Early Retirement (age 55-64)
Retirees who are age 55+ with 20 years of service (as above) are eligible for retirement healthcare benefits. Early retirees remain in the same medical plans that Reed offers its regular employees. Upon reaching age 65, early retirees become regular retirees.
Retirement for those hired on or after July 1, 2006
Employees hired after July 1, 2006 who work at least .5 FTE in a benefits eligible position participate in a different Emeriti retiree medical plan. Under this plan, the college makes a monthly contribution to a TIAA healthcare account which can be used to pay for any IRS-qualifying medical expense after retirement.
This account remains unvested and unable to be utilized until the employee meets the eligibility requirements (age 55+ and 20 years of service, as above) and becomes a Reed retiree.
For 2024-2025, the college contributes $233.90 per month to eligible employees' Emeriti healthcare accounts.
Monthly contributions begin once a benefits eligible employee reaches age 40 and they continue for up to 25 years, so long as the employee remains in a benefits eligible position.
Employees may contribute their own after-tax dollars to this account.
NOTICE: Effective January 1, 2025 Emeriti will no longer partner with TIAA to hold investments but will move to partner with OneBridge to administer claims and hold assets.
Documents and additional information
Kaiser Senior Advantage plan information:
Kaiser Senior Advantage evidence of coverage
Kaiser Senior Advantage summary of benefits 2025
Emeriti plan information:
Emeriti website
Emeriti medical benefits options 2023
Emeriti claim reimbursement form
Emeriti Aetna plan options cost by zip code
Make voluntary contributions into your Emeriti plan
Emeriti Summary Plan Description