OE Guide: SFUSD Employees

Welcome San Francisco Unified School District employees! Open Enrollment for your 2027 health benefits is here. SFHSS administers your Medical and Vision benefits.

This year, SFHSS encourages you to Find the Value in Your Benefits. Your plans include hidden gems that can help you meet your wellness goals—like using vision benefits for non‑prescription sunglasses, accessing acupuncture or chiropractic care without a referral, and maternity programs with doula or midwife options. You also have discounts on gyms, meal prep services, and more. Review your plan’s Summary of Benefits to uncover perks you may not have known about.

Open Enrollment is your once‑a‑year chance to change your coverage without a Qualifying Life Event. Compare plans, add or drop dependents, switch coverage, or waive it altogether.

Use the buttons below to view Important Dates and the schedule of Benefits Fairs.

MEDICAL

Health Net Leaving the California Health Insurance Market in February 2027

Health Net notified SFHSS on September 2, 2026, that it will leave the California market at the end of February 2027. All current Health Net members should choose a new medical plan during Open Enrollment. If you don’t switch plans, you may face coverage disruptions, including being auto‑assigned to a new primary care physician (PCP) starting March 1, 2027.

If you were planning to switch to Health Net, please reconsider to avoid disruption.

To keep your current PCP, you can enroll in a Blue Shield of California HMO plan and select your PCP during enrollment.

Premiums for Some Health Plans Increased at a Rate Higher Than The National Average

Several health plans have significantly increased their premiums for plan year 2027 due to the rising costs of health care. We encourage you to review all available medical plan options to see if a more affordable health plan can meet your needs. 

Kaiser Permanente HMO 

• Kaiser has expanded preventive and reproductive health benefits, including enhanced cervical cancer screening and updated fertility coverage for eligible members.
• New transportation support after hospital discharge for eligible members requiring medically appropriate ground transportation.

Digital Communications for Open Enrollment is Coming Soon!

SFHSS plans to transition all members to digital Open Enrollment communications. With email communications, you’ll get faster communication with direct links to research benefit information or log in to SF My Hub to make benefit changes.

This may be your last year receiving a mailed Open Enrollment letter. To ensure you continue to receive important information about your health benefits such as changes to benefits and reminders for enrollment deadlines, please do these two things:

1. Review and update both your home and work email through the Frontline Portal for SFUSD employees.
2. Visit https://sfhss.org/oe-resources and follow the instructions for “How to Opt Back In To Receive Open Enrollment Email Communications,” including the SFHSS monthly newsletter.

1. Login to SF My Hub and select the Open Enrollment tile to review or make changes.
2. Complete your benefit elections and print or save your Confirmation Receipt of Submission for your records.
3. If you’re not making changes to your health benefits, nor adding or dropping dependents, and you don’t want to to have any Flexible Spending Account(s), then no action is needed. Your current elections will automatically carry over to the next plan year.
4. You will receive a Confirmation Email notice by early December of this year.

You can find more detailed instructions on how to navigate the online health benefits enrollment process here: SF My Hub Navigation Instructions.

Not sure which plan is best for you? 

You can schedule a personal consultation with a plan representative to ask about your specific situation to decide if you want to switch to another plan or keep the plan you have. Click the buttons below to schedule a consultation with a plan representative or you can call them directly under Key Contacts.

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)

An HMO is a medical plan that offers benefits through a network of participating physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers working closely together to help coordinate your care. You select a Primary Care Physician (PCP) who will coordinate all non-emergency care and services including access to certain specialists, programs and treatments that are in the same medical group or network. You must live or work in a ZIP code serviced by the plan to enroll. Under these plans, there is no plan year deductible before accessing your benefits. Most services are available for a fixed dollar amount known as a "co-payment".

Preferred Provider Organization (PPO)

A PPO is a medical plan that provides access to a network of health care providers (doctors, hospitals, labs, pharmacies, etc.) known as preferred providers. You pay less when you to seek services from preferred providers. However, the plan allows you the option of seeing non-preferred providers, but requires you to pay a higher percentage of the bill. Generally, when compared to HMO medical plans, PPOs usually result in higher out-of-pocket costs and a deductible will apply to many services. Instead of having a fixed co-pay for medical services, your cost share may vary as a percentage of what the provider charges, known as a “coinsurance”. You will need to pay your plan year deductible prior to paying your coinsurance for the applicable service.

Click the following buttons to learn about the different HMO and PPO plans SFHSS offers.

SFHSS offers two vision plans for members and dependents who are enrolled in a SFHSS medical plan. Vision coverage is provided through Vision Service Plan (VSP). 

Vision Service Plan - Basic

The VSP Basic Plan is included with enrollment in all SFHSS medical plans. Members are eligible for a vision exam once a year, and either one set of contacts or a pair of eyeglasses frames/lenses every other calendar year. Eligible dependent children are covered in full for polycarbonate prescription lenses.

Vision Service Plan - Premier

Members may buy-up to the VSP Premier Plan that includes coverage for either one set of contacts or a pair of eyeglasses frames/lenses every calendar year. The VSP Premier Plan provides a higher allowance for a frame and lenses or contacts. If a member buys up to the VSP Premier Plan, member’s dependents will also be enrolled in the VSP Premier Plan.

No Medical Plan = No Vision Benefits 
If you do not enroll in a medical plan, you and your dependents are not eligible to enroll in VSP Vision Care plans offered through SFHSS. You and your dependents must choose the same vision plan option.

*Employees with 11 and 21 pay periods pay a pro-rated premium rate for VSP Premier before summer break.

Well-Being Benefits

Your health plan offers many free or low-cost benefits to support preventive care, healthy living, mental health, and overall well-being. For more information, click the Well-Being Benefits button below. 

Employee Mental Health Benefits

Your health plan provides Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorder resources. To explore confidential support, self-care tools, benefits, and educational resources click the Employee Mental Health Benefits button below. 

Active employees can access the city Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for individual and organizational counseling through the Department of Human Resources. For information or to access services, call (628) 652-4600 or email: eap@sfgov.org. 

For urgent mental health issues, members should call 911 or go to the nearest hospital emergency room.

The San Francisco Health Service System does not administer Dental, Flexible Spending Account(s) (FSA), or Voluntary Benefits for employees of the San Francisco Unified School District. Please contact SFUSD for information about enrolling in or making changes to those benefits.

Dental benefits enrollment is administered by the SFUSD Benefits Office.

FSA enrollment is administered by the SFUSD Benefits Office. 

Voluntary Benefits enrollment is administered by the SFUSD Benefits Office. 

Your premium contributions are deducted from your paycheck and are paid at the same time as your coverage period. SFUSD employees may be paid on a bi-weekly, monthly, or school term pay schedule. Click the link below to view the 2027 Health Coverage Calendar.

Telephone or In-Person Office Support

We strongly encourage you to enroll online. If online enrollment is not an option, you may:

• Fax your Open Enrollment Application Form and supporting documents to (628) 652-4701
• Deliver them in person to our Drop Box, available from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 1145 Market Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103

Our SFHSS Benefits Analysts are available by phone or in-person to assist members.