Cornell's endowed open enrollment closes at 4pm on Friday, November 13. If you're like most faculty I talk to, you'll open Workday sometime that week and keep whatever you picked last year.
This year that costs more than usual. Cornell's health plan costs went up about 16% in 2026 and are projected up another 13% for 2027. Your share of the premium stays at 9% for individual coverage and 22.5% for everything else, but 22.5% of a bigger number is a bigger number: HR says the monthly increase runs from $6 to $143 depending on your plan and tier. CPHL's deductible and out-of-pocket max are going up too. So the plan you've been on for five years is a different deal in January, and it's worth an hour to see if it's still the right one. Here's the deadline and six things I'd look at before you submit.
The deadline
Contract college? If you're in CALS, Human Ecology, ILR, or the Vet College, your health insurance runs through New York State (NYSHIP) and your Option Transfer window usually opens in December. Items 2 through 6 below still apply to you now. Item 1 applies in December.
Six things to check
The health plan, against what you actually spent
Endowed employees choose among the Aetna plans: the Cornell Program for Healthy Living (CPHL), the classic PPO, the high-deductible plan with a health savings account, and the Weill Cornell Medicine option. The names matter less than the numbers. Pull last year's statements, add up what your family spent on care, and run that through each plan's 2027 premium, deductible, and out-of-pocket maximum. HR's open enrollment page has a comparison tool that does the arithmetic for your coverage tier.
Two things changed for 2027 that matter here. CPHL's in-network deductible doubles to $200 individual / $400 family, its out-of-pocket max goes from $2,000 / $4,000 to $3,000 / $6,000, and office copays go from $20 to $25. It's still a good plan, just less of a bargain than it was. And the high-deductible plan's deductible moves to $1,750 individual / $3,500 family, but Cornell puts $1,000 into your HSA when you enroll, which covers more than half the individual deductible before you've spent a dollar. That money is yours. It goes in pre-tax, it's never taxed when you spend it on medical costs, and it comes with you if you leave.
If your family rarely hits the deductible and you can afford to add to the HSA yourself, the high-deductible plan plus Cornell's $1,000 usually wins. If someone at home has a chronic condition or a surgery scheduled, CPHL's lower deductible can still come out ahead for the year.
Compare total cost for the year at the 2027 rates, not the premium line. Twenty minutes with last year's statements and HR's comparison tool will tell you.
FSAs don't carry over. Re-elect them.
Your medical plan rolls forward if you do nothing. Your FSAs don't. You have to re-enroll every year, and every February somebody finds out the childcare account they were counting on is empty.
Two kinds. The health FSA covers copays, glasses, and dental with pre-tax dollars, up to $3,400 for 2027, and up to $680 of what you don't use carries into the next year. Skip it if you take the HSA plan; the two don't mix. The dependent care FSA covers daycare and after-school programs up to $7,500 per household, and anything unspent is gone. At Ithaca daycare rates you'll hit $7,500 by summer, so estimate on the low side and you'll still use it all.
If you're in the HSA plan, the 2027 contribution limit is $4,500 individual / $9,000 family, and Cornell's $1,000 counts toward it. Set a payroll contribution for the rest if you can.
If you have a kid in daycare and no dependent care FSA, you're paying tax on $7,500 you don't have to.
The 10% is Cornell's money. Where's yours?
Cornell puts 10% of your pay into the Cornell University Retirement Plan (CURP) whether you contribute or not. That's one of the most generous base contributions in higher ed, and it's why a lot of faculty stop there. Your own money goes into a separate account, the 403(b) Tax-Deferred Annuity Plan. You can change that contribution any time of year, but you're already in Workday, so look now. For 2026 you can defer up to $24,500, plus $8,000 if you're 50 or older, or $11,250 if you're 60 to 63. Pre-tax in a high-earning year. Roth in a sabbatical year at half pay.
Ten percent is a floor, not a plan. Add a point or two of your own if you can.
What the retirement money is actually in
Log into TIAA or Fidelity, whichever you picked at orientation, and look. A lot of Cornell faculty are still in the default from their first week on campus, or in a TIAA Traditional allocation they don't remember choosing. The best portfolio for most of you is a boring one: a few low-cost index funds you can name, and both menus have them. If you've been here long enough to have money at both vendors, this is a good time to consolidate.
Make sure the money is in something you chose on purpose, at a cost you've actually seen.
Life and disability
Cornell gives you basic group life insurance and long-term disability and lets you buy more of each through payroll. If you have a mortgage and kids, the basic life amount is probably not enough, and group supplemental coverage is cheap compared with buying it yourself. Disability is the one people skip, and it's the one that protects the paycheck paying for everything else.
While you're in there, check the beneficiary on each policy and on CURP. A beneficiary form overrides your will. I've seen more than one that still named an ex.
Five minutes on beneficiaries. Then ask whether the coverage would carry your household for a few years if it had to.
Your spouse's plan might be the better one
If your spouse or partner has benefits somewhere else, the right answer is often to split: the family on whichever medical plan is better, dental or vision through the other employer, the HSA or FSA wherever the limits are friendlier. Two-faculty households are common in Ithaca, and if your partner is at IC, their deadline is November 6, a week before yours. Decide together by the earlier date.
Sit down with both benefit summaries at the same time. It takes an hour.
Before you click submit in Workday
- Deadline: 4pm, November 13, 2026 (endowed). Contract colleges: NYSHIP window in December.
- Premiums are up for 2027 and CPHL's deductible and out-of-pocket max are higher. Re-run the comparison at the new rates, counting Cornell's $1,000 HSA deposit on the high-deductible plan.
- Re-elect your FSAs. Health FSA $3,400, dependent care $7,500. HSA limit $4,500 / $9,000 including Cornell's $1,000.
- Cornell's 10% is the floor. Check your own 403(b) contribution and what it's invested in.
- Check beneficiaries. Decide whether basic life and disability are enough.
- If your spouse has benefits elsewhere, compare both before either of you submits.
Your benefits are a big part of your pay. Take a look at them once a year like you would a raise. You have until the 13th at 4.
Quick answers
When does Cornell open enrollment end in 2026?
Cornell's endowed open enrollment for 2027 benefits runs October 26 through 4pm on November 13, 2026, in Workday. Elections take effect January 1, 2027. Contract-college employees (CALS, Human Ecology, ILR, Vet) use the separate NYSHIP Option Transfer window, which typically falls in December.
Are Cornell health premiums going up in 2027?
Yes. Cornell's endowed health plan costs rose about 16% in 2026 and are projected to rise another 13% in 2027. The employee share stays at 9% for individual coverage and 22.5% for other tiers, but applied to a higher total, so monthly premiums increase between roughly $6 and $143 depending on plan, tier, and pay schedule.
What is changing in the Cornell Program for Healthy Living (CPHL) for 2027?
The in-network deductible goes from $100 / $200 to $200 individual / $400 family. The in-network out-of-pocket maximum goes from $2,000 / $4,000 to $3,000 / $6,000. Primary care, specialist, mental health, and children's eye exam copays go from $20 to $25.
Does Cornell contribute to my HSA?
Yes. Cornell contributes $1,000 to the health savings account of employees enrolled in the Aetna high-deductible health plan. For 2027 the HDHP deductible is $1,750 individual / $3,500 family, and the IRS HSA contribution limit is $4,500 individual / $9,000 family, including Cornell's $1,000.
Should I pick CPHL or the high-deductible plan at Cornell?
If your household rarely reaches the deductible, the high-deductible plan usually costs less: the premium is lower and Cornell deposits $1,000 into your HSA, which covers more than half of the $1,750 individual deductible. If someone in your family has a chronic condition or a planned surgery, CPHL's $200 / $400 deductible and $3,000 / $6,000 out-of-pocket maximum usually come out ahead. Compare total annual cost at the 2027 rates with HR's comparison tool.
How much does Cornell contribute to retirement?
Cornell contributes 10% of eligible pay to the Cornell University Retirement Plan (CURP) for endowed employees, with no employee contribution required. Your own voluntary contributions go into the separate 403(b) Tax-Deferred Annuity Plan, up to $24,500 in 2026 plus catch-up contributions if you're 50 or older.
What happens if I miss the Cornell deadline?
Your medical, dental, and vision elections roll forward unchanged. FSAs do not; you must re-enroll in Workday each year. After the window closes, you can only make changes with a qualifying life event such as marriage, a birth, or a change in your spouse's coverage.
Can a financial planner help with Cornell open enrollment?
Yes. I'll compare the plans against what your family actually spent at the 2027 rates, line them up against a spouse's benefits, check your 403(b) contribution and your funds at TIAA or Fidelity, and look at life and disability coverage. Fee-only, so there's nothing for me to sell you.
Want me to look it over before the 13th at 4?
A 20-minute call. Bring your enrollment worksheet and last year's statements. I'll tell you what I'd change and what I'd leave alone.
Book a conversation