{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-74-74-1315","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 74, § 74-1315","heading":"Participation by political subdivisions, public trusts,","body":"utility districts, nonprofit entities, and other local service\n\nagencies.\n\nA. Upon application in writing and subject to any underwriting\n\ncriteria that may be established by the Oklahoma Health Care\n\nAuthority, the Authority may extend the benefits of the Oklahoma\n\nEmployees Insurance and Benefits Plans to employees who are employed\n\nin positions requiring actual performance of duty during not less\n\nthan one thousand (1,000) hours per year and to all full-time\n\nemployees of:\n\n1. Any of the following groups which participate in the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System:\n\na. county,\n\nb. city,\n\nc. town,\n\nd. public trust for which the state is the primary\n\nbeneficiary, or\n\ne. conservation districts; and\n\n2. Any of the following groups:\n\na. county hospital,\n\nb. rural water district, including employees and board\n\nmembers,\n\nc. sewer district,\n\nd. gas district,\n\ne. solid waste management district,\n\nf. nonprofit water corporation employees and board\n\nmembers,\n\ng. conservancy district or master conservancy district\n\nauthorized by the provisions of Section 541 of Title\n\n82 of the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nh. voluntary organization of Oklahoma local government\n\njurisdictions listed in Section 2003 of Title 62 of\n\nthe Oklahoma Statutes including any council created by\n\nthe voluntary organizations,\n\ni. voluntary association designated to administer the\n\nCounty Government Council as authorized in Section 7\n\nof Title 19 of the Oklahoma Statutes,\n\nj. statewide nonprofit entities representing employees of\n\nthe state or employees of local political subdivisions\n\nwho are eligible for insurance benefits authorized by\n\nthe provisions of the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and\n\nBenefits Act, or\n\nk. statewide nonprofit entities receiving state funds to\n\nprovide no cost legal services to low income and\n\nsenior citizens.\n\nB. Applications to participate in the Oklahoma Employees\n\nInsurance and Benefits Plans shall be approved by majority action of\n\nthe governing body of the groups listed in subsection A of this\n\nsection.\n\nC. Groups listed in subsection A of this section participating\n\nin the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Plans shall pay all\n\ncosts attributable to their participation. The benefits of said\n\nplans for a participant provided coverage pursuant to this section\n\nshall be the same and shall include the same plan options as would\n\nbe made available to a state employee participating in the plan that\n\nresided at the same location. The premium for participating groups\n\nlisted in subsection A of this section shall be the same as paid by\n\nstate and education employees.\n\nD. Participating groups listed in subsection A of this section\n\nshall not be required to offer dental insurance as defined in\n\nparagraph 12 of Section 1303 of this title, or other insurance as\n\ndefined in paragraph 13 of Section 1303 of this title. However, if\n\ndental insurance or any other insurance is offered, it must be\n\nprovided to all eligible employees. If an employee retires and\n\nbegins to receive benefits from the Oklahoma Public Employees\n\nRetirement System or terminates service and has a vested benefit\n\nwith the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, the employee\n\nmay elect, in the manner provided in Section 1316.2 of this title,\n\nto participate in the dental insurance plan offered through the\n\nOklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act within thirty (30)\n\ndays from the date of termination of employment. The employee shall\n\npay the full cost of the dental insurance.\n\nE. 1. Any employee of a group listed in subsection A of this\n\nsection who retires or who has a vested benefit pursuant to the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System may begin the health\n\ninsurance coverage if the employer of the employee is not a\n\nparticipant of the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act and\ne dental insurance.\n\nE. 1. Any employee of a group listed in subsection A of this\n\nsection who retires or who has a vested benefit pursuant to the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System may begin the health\n\ninsurance coverage if the employer of the employee is not a\n\nparticipant of the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act and\n\ndoes not offer health insurance to its employees. Such election by\n\nthe employee to begin coverage shall be made within thirty (30) days\n\nfrom the date of termination of service.\n\n2. Any employee of a group listed in subsection A of this\n\nsection who retires or who has a vested benefit pursuant to the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System may begin or continue\n\nthe health insurance coverage if the employer of the employee is a\n\nparticipant of the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act and\n\nthe election to begin or continue coverage is made within thirty\n\n(30) days from the date of termination of service.\n\nF. Any county, city, town, county hospital, public trust,\n\nconservation district, or rural water, sewer, gas or solid waste\n\nmanagement district, or nonprofit water corporation, any of which of\n\nthe aforementioned groups is not a participating employer in the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, but which has employees\n\nwho are participating in the health, dental or life insurance plans\n\noffered by or through the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits\n\nAct on July 1, 1997, may continue to allow its current and future\n\nemployees to participate in such health, dental or life insurance\n\nplans. Participation of such employees may also continue following\n\ntermination of employment if the employee has completed at least\n\neight (8) years of service with a participating employer and such an\n\nelection to continue in force is made within thirty (30) days\n\nfollowing termination of employment. Any retiree or terminated\n\nemployee electing coverage pursuant to this section shall pay the\n\nfull cost of the insurance.\n\nG. An employee of a group listed in paragraph 2 of subsection A\n\nof this section may continue in force health, dental and life\n\ninsurance coverage following termination of employment if the\n\nemployee has a minimum of eight (8) years of service with a\n\nparticipating employer and the election to continue in force is made\n\nwithin thirty (30) calendar days following termination of\n\nemployment.\n\nH. Notwithstanding other provisions in this section, an\n\nemployer listed in subsection A of this section may cease to\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act but\n\nprovide health insurance coverage for its current and former\n\nemployees through another insurance carrier. The subsequent carrier\n\nshall be responsible for providing coverage to the entity's\n\nemployees who terminated employment with a retirement benefit, with\n\na vested benefit, or who have eight (8) or more years of service\n\nwith a participating employer but did not have a vested benefit\n\nthrough the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, if the\n\nelection to retain health insurance coverage was made within thirty\n\nentity's\n\nemployees who terminated employment with a retirement benefit, with\n\na vested benefit, or who have eight (8) or more years of service\n\nwith a participating employer but did not have a vested benefit\n\nthrough the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, if the\n\nelection to retain health insurance coverage was made within thirty\n\n(30) days of termination of employment. Coverage shall also be\n\nprovided to the eligible dependents of the employees if an election\n\nto retain coverage is made within thirty (30) days of termination of\n\nemployment. Employees who terminate employment from an employer\n\ncovered by this subsection before December 31, 2001, and elect\n\ncoverage under the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act,\n\nshall not be required to change insurance carriers in the event that\n\nthe employer changes its insurance carrier to a subsequent carrier.\n\nThe provisions of this subsection shall become effective January 1,\n\n2002.\n\nI. Employers pursuant to subsection A of this section who\n\nparticipate in the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System and\n\nwho offer health insurance coverage to their active employees, shall\n\noffer health insurance coverage to those employees who retire from\n\nthe employer and also to those employees who terminate employment\n\nand are eligible to elect a vested benefit in the System. Such\n\nemployers shall begin offering coverage to such employees on or\n\nbefore January 1, 2004. Such employees who wish to continue\n\ncoverage shall make an election to retain health insurance coverage\n\nwithin thirty (30) days of termination of employment. However,\n\nformer employees of such employers who have already retired or who\n\nhave terminated and are eligible to elect a vested benefit under the\n\nOklahoma Public Employees Retirement System, during the period\n\nbeginning January 1, 2002, and ending December 31, 2003, may make an\n\nelection to begin participation in the plans offered by the\n\nAuthority on or before December 31, 2003, in the same manner as\n\nother participating retired or vested members. The employer,\n\nassisted by the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System shall\n\nnotify by October 1, 2003, all members who have either retired from\n\nthe System or who are eligible to elect a vested benefit in the\n\nSystem between January 1, 2002, through December 31, 2003, and who\n\nwere employed by an employer listed in subsection A of this section\n\nof the member's potential eligibility to participate in such plans.\n\nEach employer shall notify the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement\n\nSystem when an employee is retiring and makes the election pursuant\n\nto this subsection to continue coverage under a plan offered by such\n\nemployer and when an employee terminates employment and is eligible\n\nto elect a vested benefit in the System and such employee elects to\n\ncontinue coverage under a plan offered by such employer. Such\n\nemployer shall also notify the Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement\n\nSystem if a retired employee or an employee who is eligible to elect\n\na vested benefit in the System terminates such continued coverage.\n\nJ. Any group that begins participation in the Oklahoma\n\nEmployees Insurance and Benefits Plans after March 17, 1970, and\n\nthat is not composed of state or education employees must have one\n\nhundred percent (100%) participation in the health plan offered\n\npursuant to the Oklahoma Employees Insurance and Benefits Act.","path":["OK Code","Title 74"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os74.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"da75d3edb241a8e2fbb9b86393d90270aa9a3ce1b51b0017bc640c5d76a24459","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-74-74-1314.5","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-74-74-1315.1"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}