Welcome New Enrollees

Enrolling Outside of Open Enrollment

Thank you for your interest in the STRS Ohio Health Care Program. Please review the Eligibility and Enrollment Guidelines for Health Care Coverage to find out if you are eligible to enroll in an STRS Ohio plan.

Comprehensive information about medical, dental and vision coverage is available in the Health Care section. You can also view STRS Ohio Health Care Program Guide or Dental and Vision Plans for a complete overview.

You and your family members may be eligible to enroll in a plan outside of open enrollment if:

  • You are applying for coverage when monthly benefits begin;
  • Your other coverage is terminating, and you apply for coverage within 31 days of loss of other coverage; or
  • You become eligible for and enroll in Medicare Parts A & B or Part B-only.

To enroll a dependent, the benefit recipient must also be enrolled in the plan. Service retirement and disability recipients can enroll a spouse upon marriage. Also, benefit recipients can enroll a child who is under age 26 upon birth, adoption or legal guardianship of a child.

Open enrollment is offered in November each year for medical/prescription plans and once every two years for dental and vision plans. If you or your dependents do not qualify for enrollment at this time, the next open-enrollment period for the medical/prescription plans and dental and vision plans begins Nov. 1, 2024, for coverage effective Jan. 1, 2025. Information will be available on our website in late October 2024.

Medical & Prescription Coverage

If you have not already received an enrollment packet from STRS Ohio, call us toll-free at 888‑227‑7877 to request your personalized list of plan options or view your plan options in your Online Personal Account. If you do not have a personal account, visit the Account Setup page to create your account. Your plan options are determined by your Medicare status on file with STRS Ohio and Medicare.

Review the information below about selecting and enrolling in a plan outside of open enrollment. Also review the plan features and monthly premiums for the plans available to you.

To enroll, submit an enrollment application to STRS Ohio along with any other required documentation. If you are applying for coverage due to a qualifying event, you can submit your enrollment application through your Online Personal Account.

If you are age 65 years or older, be sure to review the information about Medicare coverage and submit your Medicare information to STRS Ohio. See Medicare Enrollment for details.

After you complete the enrollment process, you will receive written confirmation from STRS Ohio of enrollment. (Aetna Medicare Plan enrollees will receive confirmation from Aetna.) You will also receive ID cards and plan coverage information from your plan administrator.

Dental & Vision Coverage

See Dental & Vision to learn more about eligibility, plan features and monthly premiums. Enrollment in an STRS Ohio medical plan is not required to enroll in the dental and vision plans; however, the benefit recipient must be enrolled in the dental and/or vision plan for eligible dependents to participate.

To enroll, submit an enrollment application to STRS Ohio along with any other required documentation. If you are applying for coverage due to a qualifying event, you can submit your enrollment application through your Online Personal Account.

After you complete the enrollment process, you will receive written confirmation from STRS Ohio of enrollment. If you elect dental coverage, you will also receive an ID card from Delta Dental. Vision Service Plan (VSP) does not issue ID cards for vision coverage.