CPG Connect

From Financial Health to Emotional Well-Being, Help Is at Hand

WINTER 2024

Are you looking for a smoking cessation program? A pet sitter for your dog? An accountant who specializes in clergy taxes? Do you need help making an estate plan or finding a well-staffed daycare center? Perhaps you’re dealing with the aftermath of identity theft or struggling to connect with a moody teenager. If so, The Episcopal Church Medical Trust’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through Cigna has you covered.

This confidential 24-hour service provides referrals to agencies and trained professionals who can guide eligible employees, their dependents, and anyone in the employee’s household to solutions to everyday challenges, all at no cost. When longer-term issues arise—for instance, substance abuse, an eating disorder, the loss of a loved one—the program can connect members with dedicated, licensed counselors.

The EAP covers up to 10 psychological counseling sessions per issue per year at no cost to the member. This is because stressors—big and small, personal and professional—can destabilize people’s moods and behaviors and thus threaten their livelihood.

According to CPG’s Director of Health Benefits, Andrew Brown, “historically, employee assistance programs have been stigmatized, but society has come a long way in valuing mental health and understanding how stress can undermine our overall well-being. These programs recognize the importance of being centered and emotionally healthy. They really can help clergy and lay employees—and their family members—tackle all kinds of issues.”

So why not take advantage of this great benefit today?

As one lay employee pointed out, “I used the Employee Assistance Program for the very first time during the pandemic, when my teenage daughter was struggling emotionally. They were able to provide me with an extensive list of mental health care providers.”

“I contacted the EAP for help identifying assisted living locations for my mother,” a clergyperson said. “They were very effective at assessing our needs, understanding the limitations, and providing me with a list of well-researched facilities to explore.”

Are You Eligible?

This program (myCigna.com* or 866-395-7794) is part of the Medical Trust’s Cigna, Anthem, and Kaiser health plans for active clergy and lay employees and in the UnitedHealthcare Group Medicare® Advantage (PPO) Plan for retirees.

Some employers may offer the EAP as a standalone benefit to employees who are eligible but not enrolled in a Medical Trust health plan. Ask your benefits administrator whether you are enrolled in the EAP.

*If you previously registered a myCigna account while you had a Cigna-administered medical or dental plan, you may need to reregister to access online EAP resources.

Comments? Questions? Concerns? CPG is listening. Please reach out to us at corpcomm@cpg.org

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