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Employee and Retiree Service Center → Employees → Life Events → New Child

New Child

New Addition to the Family? Be Prepared!
While you prepare your home for your new arrival, don’t forget to also prepare your career for the changes ahead. Planning ahead for leave, understanding when you will be paid, and learning about insurance coverage will let you focus on your new family member.

Taking Leave

Get information about how leave is computed, if and how the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) applies to your leave, and more on our Child Care Leave page.

New Child Checklist

Expecting, Adopting, and New Parents Before and After: A Checklist of Necessary Actions

Orange arrow Printable version (PDF)

This checklist is meant to guide you through the process of taking child care leave for maternity, paternity, and adoption and updating your employee information after the arrival of a child. Please see the child care leave page on the Employee and Retiree Service Center website for additional important information prior to taking any action.

Before the birth/adoption

Check box graphicUnderstand the Family and Medical Leave Act to see if you qualify and how it affects your leave plans.

Check box graphicCalculate your planned leave dates.

Check box graphicSubmit your leave paperwork to your principal/supervisor.

Check box graphic Understand your location's leave forms procedure. You may be asked to forward the forms to ERSC, or your location may forward them on your behalf. It is your responsibility to ensure that all forms are received at ERSC at least one month in advance of your expected leave date. Contract deadlines apply to leaves that are year-long.

Birth parents:
Check box graphicMCPS Form 430-1: Leave Request. Be sure to thoroughly review Section I, which indicates the possible need for additional forms relating to your health insurance.

Check box graphic MCPS Form 440-35: Certification of Physician or Health Care Provider

Adoptive parents:
Check box graphicMCPS Form 430-1: Leave Request. Be sure to thoroughly review Section I, which indicates the possible need for additional forms relating to your health insurance.
Check box graphicCourt/agency documents verifying adoption


Check box graphicUnderstand how your leave plans affect your health insurance rates when you go on long-term leave (longer than 60 duty days).

  Check box graphicReview the active rates, the cost of health insurance for active employees.

Check box graphicReview the leave rates, the cost of health insurance for employees who are on long-term leave.

Check box graphicIf you choose to discontinue your health insurance while you are on leave, visit MCPS Hub+, log in and select the Benefits tile under the Me tab. Next, select the Make Changes button to discontinue your benefits. You will have 30 days from the date you return from leave to re-enroll.

Check box graphicCalculate the number of sick days available to you.

Remember you may use your sick leave to be paid only for the six calendar weeks immediately following a regular delivery or adoption or eight calendar weeks following a Caesarean delivery. An MCEA unit member who has earned sick leave may use up to 10 weeks for the birth or adoption of his/her child, if the 10 weeks occurs when the member would normally work and be paid.

Check box graphic If you are a member of your union's sick leave bank, please contact your union regarding grant eligibility.

If you are eligible for a sick bank grant from your union:
Check box graphicContact your union for a sick bank grant application.

If you are not eligible for a sick bank grant from your union:
Check box graphic Understand that your leave status will be moved to unpaid leave once you exhaust your available sick leave.

After the birth/adoption

Check box graphicCall your work location to inform the timekeeper of the date of your child’s birth and whether the birth was a Caesarean delivery. This ensures that you are paid correctly.

Check box graphicCall ERSC to report your child's birth date and the type of delivery.

Check box graphicSEIU members: Call your union to report your child's birth date and type of delivery if you have applied or will be applying for a sick bank grant.

Check box graphicMCEA members: Print and complete the forms listed on this MCEA web page and send them to MCEA to apply for a sick bank grant.

Check box graphicMCAAP/MCBOA members: Call your union to report your child's birth date and type of delivery if you have applied or will be applying for a sick bank grant.

Check box graphicMake any necessary updates to your leave dates. The early or late arrival of your child will change your expected leave dates.

Check box graphic Complete a revised MCPS Form 430-1: Leave Request. No new medical documentation is required.
Check box graphic Obtain signatures from your principal/supervisor
Check box graphic Submit to ERSC

IMPORTANT! Remember that FMLA protection only covers those who meet the qualification criteria and only applies to the first 60 duty days of leave. The early or late arrival of your child may extend your leave past the 60 duty days protected by FMLA. Therefore, it is crucial that you submit revised paperwork to ERSC to establish your intentions.

Additional recommended personal and financial updates

New parents may want to consider the following list of actions and updates.

Check box graphicAdd Your New Dependent to Your Health Insurance

 Check box graphicLog in to Hub+, select the Me tab, then select the Benefits tile. Next, select the Report a Life Event tile to report your qualifying life event. 
Check box graphicAdd your new dependent to each health plan (medical, prescription, dental, and vision). Be sure to include your new dependent's Social Security number
AND
Check box graphicReturn to the Benefits screen and select Document Records. Upload a copy of your child's birth certificate or birth registration and Social Security card or email or mail it to ERSC.
OR
Check box graphicUpload a copy of the court document verifying the adoption or email or mail it to ERSC.

For detailed instructions on adding your new dependent to your health plan, refer to the Enroll New Dependent(s) Outside of Open Enrollment section of the Benefits Employee User Guide.

 

IMPORTANT! You have 30 calendar days following the birth or adoption of your child to enroll him or her in your employee benefits. If you do not complete enrollment within 30 calendar days, you must wait until a future Open Enrollment.

If there is a delay in your receipt of required documents (birth registration, birth certificate, social security number and adoption papers), please contact ERSC before the end of the 30-day period.

For additional information about enrolling dependents in your employee benefits, please refer to the Employee Benefit Summary.

Check box graphicSign up for a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) for Dependent Care or Medical Expenses. You may soon have childcare expenses and out-of-pocket medical costs that are predictable. This is the ideal situation for an FSA.

Check box graphic Visit the ERSC website for information about FSAs, including:

Introductory Video about FSAs
Flexible Spending Account Information  

Check box graphic Log in to Hub+ and select the Benefits tile under the Me tab. Select the Dependent Care FSA Calculator to determine your suggested annual contribution. See detailed instuctions for using the FSA Calculator.

Check box graphicReturn to the Benefits screen, and select Report a Life Event. Select your life event, enter the date of your event, and click Continue. Add your new dependent under People to Cover and click Continue. Once you click Accept on the authorization screen, click Continue.

Check box graphicClick Edit on each level of coverage for medical, dental, prescription, vision, life insurance, and FSA accounts, and elect the coverage you would like to be enrolled in. Enter the amount you would like to have deducted from each of your paychecks.

Please note:
10-month employees have deductions over 20 paychecks
12-month employees have deductions over 26 paychecks. 

IMPORTANT! You are not eligible to enroll in an FSA until you have returned to work. You have 30 calendar days following the date you return to work to enroll in an FSA via Hub+. If you do not complete enrollment within 30 calendar days, you must wait until a future open enrollment.

Additional information about enrolling in an FSA

Check box graphicAdjust Your Income Tax Withholding by logging in to Hub+ and clicking on the Direct Deposit & W4 tile under the Me tab. Select the Tax Withholding tile, then the editing (pencil) icon on the right.

Check box graphicUpdate your life insurance beneficiaries.

Basic Employee Term Life Insurance and Optional Employee Term Life Insurance
Check box graphicLog in to Hub+ and, under the Me tab, select the Benefits tile. For detailed instructions, see the Designate or Remove Your Beneficiaries–Life Insurance section within the Benefits Employee User Guide. 

Check box graphicUpdate your 403(b) and/or 457(b) plan beneficiaries. Contact your vendor for additional information.

Check box graphic Update your Pension Plan beneficiaries.

MCPS Core and/or Supplement pension plan
Check box graphicMCPS Form 455-5: Designation of Beneficiary/Beneficiaries

State Core pension plan
Check box graphicSRA Form 4: Designation of Beneficiary

Check box graphicResearch and consider purchasing Employee and/or Dependent Life Insurance.

Read the Life Insurance section of the ERSC website for information about cost, coverage, and eligibility for:

Check box graphic Basic Employee Term Life Insurance
Check box graphic Optional Employee Term Life Insurance
Check box graphic Basic Dependent Term Life Insurance
Check box graphic Optional Dependent Term Life Insurance

IMPORTANT! Different types of life insurance have different enrollment timeframes. Please understand that you are only able to purchase new or additional employee life insurance during the annual Open Enrollment period each Fall.

If you are already enrolled in Basic Employee Term Life Insurance and you add your child as a dependent to your Employee Benefit Plan, you automatically receive Basic Dependent Life Insurance and you are eligible to purchase Optional Dependent Term Life Insurance.

You have 30 calendar days from the date of birth/adoption to purchase Optional Dependent Term Life Insurance. To do so, log in to Hub+ and, under the Me tab, select the Benefits tile. For instructions, see the Enroll New Dependent(s) in Benefits (outside of Open Enrollment)—Current Employees section within the Benefits Employee User Guide. 

Additional information about dependent life insurance