Changes

Qualifying Life Events

Qualifying Life Events (QLE) allow you to make changes within the year as long as you make the change and provide the required supporting documentation within the required timeframe. If you experience one of the events below, please follow the instructions below within 30 days of the event. If you miss this deadline, you may have to wait until the next Benefits Open Enrollment period to make changes.

Bioworkers reporting a QLE should:

  1. Navigate to the Employee Benefits & Wellness Application
  2. Select ‘Change Benefits’
  3. Select the appropriate life event option and enter the date the change occurred. Future effective dates are acceptable.
  4. Attach any relevant files (ex: birth certificate for newborn, marriage certificate, etc.)
  5. Click Submit
  6. A dialog box will pop up, confirming that you’ve initiated a life event. Click ‘Open’
  7. Then click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button to start making your elections.
Spouses
Getting married, legally separated, or divorced is a QLE that qualifies you to make changes to your benefits.
Dependents
If you and/or your dependent are enrolled in a non-Ginkgo Bioworks plan and lose that coverage, you’re eligible for a QLE.
Children
Giving birth to or adopting a child or obtaining legal custody of a child qualifies as a QLE.

A Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) has been designed to assist you with better understanding the coverage being offered to you, and to allow you to compare coverage options. The SBC is available on www.ginkgobioworksbenefits.com. A paper copy is also available, free of charge, by calling 877-422-5362.

Ginkgo Bioworks permits insurers to offer employees of Ginkgo Bioworks certain voluntary insurance programs. Whether you choose to enroll in any of these programs is completely optional and voluntary. Ginkgo Bioworks does not make a contribution towards the cost of these programs and employees pay the full cost of premiums on an after-tax basis. Ginkgo Bioworks does not sponsor, maintain, endorse, recommend, or promote these voluntary programs. Ginkgo Bioworks'S involvement regarding these voluntary insurance programs is strictly limited to allowing the insurer access to employees to publicize these programs and Ginkgo Bioworks may perform certain ministerial functions such as payroll deduction and forwarding employee premium payments to the insurer. Ginkgo Bioworks does not receive any consideration in the form of cash or otherwise in connection with the program, other than reasonable compensation, excluding any profit, for administrative services actually rendered in connection with payroll deductions. Accordingly, these voluntary insurance programs are not subject to ERISA and related regulations. All questions or claims regarding these programs should be directed to the insurer.

All benefit plans are governed by master policies, contracts, and plan documents. In the event of any inconsistency between the information contained herein and the applicable plan documents, the provisions of the plan documents shall prevail. Ginkgo Bioworks reserves the right to amend, suspend or terminate any benefit plan, in whole or in part, at any time. The authority to make such changes rests with the Plan Administrator.

© Piper Jordan. All Rights Reserved.