SHARP Message #740

Kansas Health Policy Authority (KHPA) HealthQuest implemented a program for plan year 2008 that included the incentive of a $50 Gift Card for completing the HealthQuest Personal Health Assessment (PHA). As noted in previous communications from KHPA, if participating employees do not select a gift card of their choice by October 31, 2008, a gift card will be chosen for them.

The Gift Card Award is a taxable fringe benefit to the plan participant for the total of all gift cards selected by or for the plan participant and their eligible dependent(s). For State employees and their eligible dependents, the taxes on the fringe benefit income will be deducted from the participating employee’s paycheck. Fringe Benefit Income is added to, and reported in, gross wages on the W-2.

For active State employees paid through SHARP, an interface will be processed to generate the necessary fringe benefit income (‘FBN’) earnings for inclusion on the employee’s 11/14/08 paycheck. Each agency will receive a report in their agency mailbox on the MVS which lists all employees in the agency who had ‘FBN’ earnings added to their 10/19/08 – 11/01/08 timesheet.

The following procedures will be used for State employees paid through SHARP who have left State employment since the completion of the gift card requirements:

1. KHPA will receive an error listing of all fringe benefit income earnings that could not be updated to employee time records through the interface process (employee termed/retired, incorrect data, etc.)
2. KHPA will contact individual agencies to resolve all errors generated due to retired/terminated employees, incomplete data, etc.
3. For terminated/retired employees, agency personnel must complete the following steps:
   a. Agency personnel must complete a pay affecting adjustment to the employee’s most current paycheck in the current calendar year that has not been previously adjusted and does not contain a garnishment or specific earnings codes (see further information regarding Agency Payroll Adjustment at http://www.da.ks.gov/ar/payroll/AgencyPayAdjust.htm).
   
   b. If agency personnel are unable to perform the adjustment due to garnishments or previous adjustments to the paycheck, the agency must submit a completed form DA-180, Paycheck Reversal/Adjustment/Supplemental for central processing by the Division of Accounts and Reports Payroll Services Team. Instructions for requesting a Centrally Entered Adjustment can be found at http://www.da.ks.gov/ar/payroll/adjust.htm.

Once entered, processing the adjustment to create the Fringe Benefit Income for a retired or terminated employee will create an employee arrearage for the amount of the employee tax liability on the fringe benefit income. It is at the agency’s discretion to either work to recover the amount of this arrearage from the individual employee, or to write-off the amount of the employee arrearage. Further information on the policies and procedures regarding uncollectible arrearages can be located at: Info Circ 00-p-020 - Salary Overpayments and Outstanding Arrearages.

The HealthQuest Personal Health Assessment (PHA) program with the gift card incentive is scheduled to be offered again by Kansas Health Policy Authority (KHPA) HealthQuest in Plan Year 2009. Currently, a bi-weekly interface process has been proposed to provide the data necessary for SHARP and Regent agencies to generate the necessary fringe benefit income (‘FBN’) earnings for calendar year 2009 on a regular basis.

All questions regarding the gift card program and interfaces should be directed to Eric Strate, Kansas Health Policy Authority at (785) 291-3546. The Division of Accounts and Reports will be responsible for processing the interface file to update time sheets with the fringe benefit income earnings for active State employees and for processing DA-180 forms submitted by agencies for entry of adjustments which could not be processed by the agency. Questions regarding the processing of adjustments can be directed to Joyce Dickerson, Division of Accounts and Reports, Payroll Services at (785) 296-3979. Regent institutions will be provided an interface file from KHPA for their agency and are responsible for the generation of the necessary fringe benefit income transactions for their employees as well as any adjustment transactions for terminated or retired employees.