Open Enrollment Instructions

Benefits Open Enrollment is completed using Enterprise Business Systems (EBS) Portal for health, dental, life, and flexible spending accounts. Visit the MSU Benefits Plus website to enroll in voluntary benefits such as vision, legal, and critical illness, or see the Retirement Enrollment Guide to enroll in retirement plans.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Non-union support staff and POAM employees, along with out-of-state APSA and CTU employees, who want to enroll in the Consumer Driven Health Plan (CDHP) will need to complete the Offline Enrollment form.
• Enroll in, change, or cancel voluntary benefits (vision, legal, critical illness insurance, etc.) by visiting the MSU Benefits Plus website.  Contact MSU Benefits Plus directly with enrollment questions at  888-758-7575.

If You Cover a Spouse or Other Eligible Individual (OEI):

If you cover a spouse or OEI on your benefits plan, you must complete the steps below to complete the Health Plan Affidavit during Open Enrollment (October 1-31). There is not a separate Affidavit-Only option through the EBS Portal; you must do the steps below to complete the Affidavit.

If a new affidavit is not completed during the Open Enrollment period, your spouse/OEI will lose health benefits for 2025.  The next opportunity to enroll will be a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) or next open enrollment period. Further, your spouse/OEI will not be offered COBRA continuation of coverage since failure to prove eligibility is not a COBRA qualifying event.

Process for Completing Open Enrollment:

1. Visit ebs.msu.edu and log in using your MSU NetID and password.
2. Complete multi-factor authentication. If you have not yet registered for multi-factor authentication, visit the MSU Secure IT website.
3. Click the My Benefits top navigation tab.
4. Click the Benefit/Retirement tile. Select Open Enrollment from the dropdown menu, then click Next (bottom right corner).
5. A disclaimer that explains the CDHP/HSA plans (regardless of CDHP/HSA eligibility) will appear. Please read, and then click OK to continue.
6. You may have the Health Plan Affidavit for Spouse or OEI appear. Answer the question and click Next. The following statement will confirm your answer. If the info is correct, click Next.
7. The Personal Profile screen will appear. Verify Name and Address information and click Next. If information is inaccurate, follow the steps on this EBS Help page to correct the information.
8. The Dependents screen will appear. Verify all Family Member/Dependents and click Next. If information is not listed, exit Benefits Open Enrollment and submit the Add a Family Member or Dependent form. If information is inaccurate, contact MSU Human Resources.
9. The Benefits Summary screen will appear, which displays current coverage. For additional details about each plan, click on the plan name. When finished reviewing, click Next.
10. Following the Benefits Summary screen, the next several screens take you through the different types of plans available to you such as health plans, Flexible Spending Accounts, and life/accident plans among others. You can choose to Add, Edit or Delete enrollment in these plans. You may also click Cancel at any time, which will exit you out of the enrollment system and all changes made will be lost.
11. Once you are through the plans screens, you will reach the Review and Save screen. Click Save.
12. Lastly, the Final Screen will appear. Review information provided on the Benefit Elections Summary. You may wish to print this summary for your records. From here, you will have the option to click on additional links such as MSU Benefits Plus or Retirement/Health Savings Accounts.

Notes:

• After completing Open Enrollment, a confirmation statement will be emailed to your MSU NetID email address with your plan selections. You may access Open Enrollment throughout the month of October to make updates or corrections as needed.
• To print or view your current and/or future benefits participation, log into the EBS Portal, click the My Benefits tab and then the Current Benefits Participation tile. Find detailed instructions here.
• The EBS Portal has specific browser and Adobe Acrobat requirements. Information on supported platforms can be found here. Review the EBS Compatibility Matrix for currently supported versions of this software, based on the installed operating system. Contact the MSU IT Service Desk at 517-884-3000 if you have system issues. 
• Remember you cannot use your browser's back button while in EBS or your record will become locked. If this happens, log out completely and log in again.

For more resources, see our Detailed Open Enrollment Instructions.

How-To Enroll Video