Open Enrollment is your annual opportunity to make any change to your benefits. Outside of this open enrollment period, benefit changes can only be made if you experience a Qualifying Life Event.

The City’s open enrollment period is a four-week window that takes place in the fall (beginning in October and wrapping into November) where employees can select their benefit elections for the following calendar year (Jan. 1 through Dec. 31). The 2026 Open Enrollment period will be from October 23, 2025 through November 19, 2025.

During Open Enrollment, it is important to review your current benefits to confirm they meet your personal and family needs. Access the SAP portal from Citynet through the quick links menu, and select the 2026 Open Enrollment tile to enter the benefits portal. Review your existing elections and update your medical, dental, vision, and life insurance coverage as needed. For those participating in a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), note that FSA elections do not roll over and must be re-elected each year. Supplemental employee and spouse life insurance coverage can be increased by one tier without submitting Evidence of Insurability (EOI), provided the new amount is within the Guaranteed Issue Amount (GIA). Be sure to review your life insurance beneficiary designations and submit your elections before the deadline to set your benefits for the upcoming plan year.

Yes, there are two provider changes for 2026:

EyeMed (Impacts all employees, except MEA): Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, EyeMed will be the City’s new vision provider, replacing the VSP plan. EyeMed will provide two vision plan options:

• EyeMed Silver Plan – Mirrors the current VSP plan, providing essential/basic coverage.
• EyeMed Gold Plan – Offers enhanced benefits and expanded coverage.

Important: Employees currently enrolled in the City’s VSP plan will be automatically enrolled in the new EyeMed Silver Plan, unless they make a different vision plan election during the open enrollment window.

Local 145 Cigna HMO (Impacts fire safety employees): Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, fire safety employees will have an additional Cigna HMO plan option, sponsored by the International Association of Firefighters (Local 145). This Local 145 Cigna HMO plan will replace the existing Anthem plan, effective Jan. 1, 2026.

Important: Employees currently enrolled in the Local 145 Anthem plan will be automatically enrolled in the new Local 145 Cigna HMO Plan, unless they make a different medical election during the open enrollment window.

If you do not take any action during the 2026 open enrollment window, most of your elections will carry over into 2026 except for the following:

• Flexible spending accounts: FSA elections do not automatically roll over from one plan year to the next. If you want to enroll in the 2026 FSA, you must do so during the open enrollment window.
• VSP (Vision) for non-MEA employees: VSP will be replaced by EyeMed, effective 1/1/2026. If you’re enrolled in the VSP plan for 2025, you will be automatically enrolled in the EyeMed Silver plan for 2026, unless you make a change during open enrollment.
• Local 145 Anthem HMO for fire-safety employees: The local 145 Anthem HMO will be replaced by the Local 145 Cigna HMO, effective 1/1/2026. If you’re enrolled in the Local 145 Anthem HMO plan for 2025, you will be automatically enrolled in the Local 145 Cigna HMO plan for 2026, unless you make a change during open enrollment.

Even if you're satisfied with your current benefits, it's a good idea to review your elections and confirm they still meet your needs.

From Citynet, select the SAP Portal button located under Quick links. Then select the 2026 Open Enrollment tile. The application will walk you through the steps for reviewing, changing, and confirming your benefits enrollment.

You are not allowed to change your benefits outside of the enrollment window, unless you experience an IRS qualifying life event (birth of a child, marriage, etc) and you report the event and provide the necessary documentation within 30 days. Visit the Qualifying Events website for more information.

Yes. Flexible Spending Account (FSA) elections do not roll over and must be re-elected each year.

If you need assistance during Open Enrollment, help is available through several convenient channels. You can contact the Employee Benefits team by emailing benefits@sandiego.gov or by calling 619-236-5924 and selecting option 1 in the phone tree. You may also request a one-on-one appointment, or attend a benefits fair or virtual drop-in session.

Changes made during Open Enrollment take effect on January 1 of the following year.

If you are enrolling new dependents to your health plan or enrolling in supplemental life insurance coverage for your spouse/domestic partner or child(ren), you must submit dependent verification documents (birth certificate, marriage certificate, etc.) to benefits@sandiego.gov  within 30 days of your enrollment deadline. If you fail to provide dependent verification, your dependents could be disenrolled. For a complete list of dependent verification documents, please review page 58 of the 2026 Employee Benefits Guide.

Yes, you should still complete your Open Enrollment elections even if you're planning to separate from City service. Doing so helps ensure continuity of coverage and may support eligibility for COBRA, especially if your retirement plans change.

The City of San Diego is committed to providing quality benefits at the best value for employees and their families. To ensure this, the City periodically conducts a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) process. Through this process, EyeMed was selected as the new vision plan provider beginning in 2026 because they offered the most competitive package in terms of provider access, plan design, and overall value.

Starting in 2026, your vision benefits will be administered by EyeMed instead of VSP. While many providers participate in both networks, some may differ. EyeMed offers a broader network that includes major retail providers like LensCrafters, Target Optical, and Pearle Vision, giving members greater flexibility and convenience. Costco will become an out-of-network provider under EyeMed. However, the out-of-network cost at Costco is only a small increase compared to what members previously paid in-network with VSP. So while Costco is no longer in-network, members can still choose to use it with minimal cost impact.

It’s important to review the EyeMed provider directory to confirm whether your current eye doctor is in-network under EyeMed. Visit the EyeMed California Provider Network Search to search for providers by location and name of doctor, and services. The EyeMed network is the “Insight Network”.

Your vision benefits will continue to cover routine eye exams, glasses, and contact lenses, but there may be differences in coverage levels, copays, or discounts. Full details of your new plan options can be found on the City’s EyeMed webpage and in the 2026 Employee Benefits Guide.

If your provider is not part of EyeMed’s network, you may still be able to see them, but your out-of-pocket costs could be slightly higher. You’ll want to review the EyeMed provider network and consider your options during Open Enrollment. Visit the EyeMed California Provider Network Search to search for providers by location and name of doctor, and services. The EyeMed network is the “Insight Network”.

No. All employees who are currently enrolled in the VSP vision plan will be automatically enrolled in the EyeMed Silver plan effective January 1, 2026. The Silver plan offers coverage that is very similar to what you currently have under VSP. During Open Enrollment, you’ll also have the opportunity to explore the EyeMed plan options if you wish to make a change, or you can waive vision coverage.

Unlike VSP, which only offered one basic vision plan, EyeMed will provide two plan options:

• Silver Plan – Mirrors the current VSP plan, providing essential/basic coverage.
• Gold Plan – Offers enhanced benefits and expanded coverage for those who want additional options, such as higher allowances or more flexibility in eyewear.

This allows employees to choose the plan that best meets their vision needs and budget.

To qualify for the flexible benefit plan, you must be working in a standard hour position as a full-time, half-time, or three-quarters time employee.

Employees working in a seasonal, provisional, or other non-standard hour position are not eligible for the flexible benefits plan. For questions about your eligibility, contact Employee Benefits at benefits@sandiego.gov or 619-236-5924 (option 1).

You can enroll your spouse/domestic partner or children in your health plans, as long as they meet the eligibility criteria and you provide the required dependent verification documents by the documentation deadline. For more information, review the Eligible Dependents document.

No, the City of San Diego does not allow dual enrollment in its health plans. If both you and your spouse or child are City employees:

• Each of you may enroll in individual coverage for yourselves, or
• One of you may enroll in coverage that includes the other as a dependent, while the other must waive coverage for that specific health plan.

This policy ensures compliance with plan rules and prevents overlapping coverage under City-sponsored health benefits.

The City provides funds in the form of Flexible Benefit Plan (FBP) Credits to assist with the payment of health plan premiums, basic life insurance premiums, and flexible spending accounts. The amount of FBP Credits you receive depends on three factors: your bargaining unit (union), your most recent hire date, and whether you are covering dependents under your medical plan. On the following pages you will find seven different FBP Credit tables for each of the City’s unions/employee groups.

If the total cost of your health plan options is less than your allocated FBP credits, the excess credits may or may not be forfeited. Depending on your most recent hire date and medical dependent coverage level, employees may have the option to allocate any excess credits to the 401k plan, referred to as 401k Flex contributions or to cash out the remaining amount as taxable income. If these options are not available to you, the excess FBP credit amount will be forfeited.

If the total cost of your health plan options exceeds your allocated FBP credits, the excess cost will be deducted from your paycheck on a pretax basis. However, if your domestic partner is not a tax dependent, a portion of the premium will be deducted on a post-tax basis.

Flexible Benefits Plan (FBP) transactions are processed semi-monthly, with the City issuing FBP credits and collecting premiums from employees’ paychecks twice per month. However, in months with three paychecks, the middle paycheck does not include any FBP credits or benefit plan deductions. For the calendar year 2026, FBP transactions will be skipped on the following paycheck dates:

• January 16, 2026
• July 15, 2026
• December 18, 2026

If you enroll or increase your supplemental life insurance outside of your initial enrollment window or outside of the open enrollment window, you will be required to provide evidence of insurability (EOI).

During your newly eligible 30-day enrollment window, The Hartford offers a special option to those that enroll in Supplemental Life Insurance, in which evidence of insurability (proof of good health) will not be required for new enrollments up to the guaranteed issue amount (up to $250,000 for yourself and up to $50,000 for your spouse/domestic partner).

During Open Enrollment, you may increase your coverage by one tier (up to the Guaranteed Issue Amount) without submitting Evidence of Insurability (EOI).

If you elect coverage above the GIA, you will receive a letter in the mail from The Hartford within 30 days of making your election with instructions for completing the EOI steps online. There is no EOI requirement for enrolling in Child(ren) Life Insurance.

If both you and your spouse or child are employed by the City, each employee may enroll in supplemental life insurance coverage for themselves. However, the City’s plan does not allow dual enrollment in supplemental coverage for the same individual. This means:

• Both employees may elect supplemental life insurance for themselves only, or
• One employee may elect supplemental coverage for themselves and their spouse or child, while the other waives supplemental coverage.

This ensures that no individual is covered under more than one supplemental life insurance policy at a time. For help determining the best coverage arrangement for your household, contact Employee Benefits at benefits@sandiego.gov or 619-236-5924 (option 1).