You may have received an Atrium Health benefits package, but do you know how to maximize it? Let’s dive into learning how you can maximize your Atrium Health benefits package.
Get The Full 401(k) Employer Match Offered By Your Atrium Health Benefits
Each year, Atrium Health will contribute 2% of your pay to your 401(k) account, regardless of whether you save through the plan. The contribution is made annually, typically between January and March.
Atrium Health employees also have the potential to receive an additional 4% from Atrium through the company match. To receive the full 4% match, you must save 6% of your pay through the plan. When you save 6% of your pay through the plan, Atrium will match your contribution as follows:
- 75% of the first 4% of pay that you save
- 50% of the next 2% of pay that you save
This means that if you make $100,000 a year, you can contribute $4,000 and Atrium will add another $6,000 to that!
You won’t find this kind of return anywhere else in the market. It’s a 67% return on your investment.
If you haven’t already, adjust your paycheck withholdings so you’re contributing enough to get the full employer match.
As an Atrium Health employee, you may also receive between a 1-2% additional employer contribution when Atrium meets certain performance targets. The contribution is based on years of service as follows, and is made regardless of whether you save through the plan.
- Less than 10 years – 1% of pay contribution
- 10 to 19 years – 1.50% of pay contribution
- 20 or more years – 2% of pay contribution
Take It a Step Further by Maxing Out Your 401(k) Completely
Maxing out your 401(k) is one of the easiest ways to reduce your taxable income for the year. It also gives a nice boost to your retirement savings.
For 2024, you can contribute up to $23,000 to your 401(k). If you’re 50 years of age or older, you can contribute an additional $7,500 in catch-up contributions.
Many people forget to bump up their contribution when they turn 50 to account for this increased allowance, so set a reminder if your 50th birthday is on the horizon.
ADVANTAGE Retirement Plan
The Atrium Health ADVANTAGE Retirement Plan is an additional company-specific retirement plan that is a benefit of Atrium employment. The Atrium Health ADVANTAGE Retirement Plan works similarly to the 401(k) plan in that savings and earnings grow tax-free until dollars are withdrawn at retirement. Unlike the 401(k) plan, however, a major advantage of the ADVANTAGE Account is there is no 10% penalty for early withdrawal at retirement or upon termination of employment, regardless of age.
For 2024, you can contribute up to $23,000 to your ADVANTAGE Account. If you’re at least 50, you can add an additional $7,500 in catch-up contributions.
Atrium Health does not match your contributions to the ADVANTAGE Account. Therefore, before you consider enrolling in the ADVANTAGE Account, you should already be contributing your full match-eligible amount to the 401(k) Plan. The ADVANTAGE plan should be used as an additional pretax retirement plan to supplement the 401(k) plan.
CHSMG 401(a) Plan for Physicians
You’re eligible to participate in the CHSMG Plan if you’re a physician or dentist employed by Atrium Health. You’re automatically enrolled in the plan if your prior year’s earnings are at least $270,000. Contributions are 6% of current earnings, subject to an annual contribution limit.
Annual contributions to the CHSMG Plan and the 401(k) Plan are subject to a combined annual limit. This limit includes your contributions and Atrium Health contributions. The combined annual limit for 2024 is $69,000.
Contributions to the plan are generally an offset to incentive or true-up payments. Contributions and any investment earnings are always 100% vested.
When you leave Atrium Health, you can receive your account balance in a lump-sum payment, or you can roll over your account balance to an IRA or another plan.
Consider Roth Contributions From Atrium Health Benefits
Roth accounts can play a large part in helping you minimize taxes and maximize your retirement savings. Depending on your financial situation, it may make sense to contribute to the Roth portion of the Atrium 401(k), or consider a backdoor Roth IRA.
This step is more difficult to complete than the others, so you may need help from an expert to figure out if Roth contributions are something you should consider.
At Calamita Wealth, we can help you evaluate whether to put money into the Roth component of your Atrium 401(k). We can also evaluate the viability of an annual backdoor Roth IRA.
Backdoor Roth IRAs, in particular, require precise timing to avoid taxes. Our team can help you figure out if this should be a part of your overall wealth plan.
Update Beneficiaries For the 401(k) and ADVANTAGE Plans
Many people we work with forget to update the primary and contingent beneficiaries on their 401(k) and ADVANTAGE plans. We’ve seen many instances where clients thought they had the correct beneficiaries listed. But after receiving a printed beneficiary confirmation statement, it was clear that either the wrong beneficiary was listed, no beneficiary was listed, or it was missing contingent beneficiaries.
Moral of the story? Request printed beneficiary confirmation statements for your accounts and make sure you’ve listed the correct beneficiaries.
Get Familiar with The Empower Platform
To access your Atrium Health Retirement Plans, you’ll need to login to the Empower 401(k) Platform. Now is the perfect time to get familiar with Empower, review your investment options, and update your asset allocation if necessary.
Max Out Your HSA Contributions
If you have a high-deductible health insurance plan, you’re eligible for a health savings account (HSA). HSAs are unique because they’re 100% tax-free: contributions are tax-free, money held in the account grows tax-free, and withdrawals are tax-free. You can use them to cover most medical expenses, including prescriptions, doctor visits, and even eyeglasses.
For 2024, you can contribute up to $4,150 to an HSA if you have a self-only insurance plan, and up to $8,300 if you have a family plan.
Atrium also offers employer matching and an incentive program, in which an individual or family can earn over $1,000 to have as a deposit into their HSA account.
How We Help Atrium Employees With Their Atrium Health Benefits
At Calamita Wealth Management, many of our clients are Atrium employees whom we’ve helped maximize and optimize their Atrium Health benefits. Would you like professional help to make sure you get the most out of all your benefits have to offer? Schedule an introductory phone call using our online calendar or reach out to us at (704) 276-7325 or todd@calamitawealth.com.
About Todd
Todd Calamita is the founder and managing principal of Calamita Wealth Management. This is an independent, fee-only wealth management company located in Charlotte, NC. Calamita Wealth serves people locally and across the country, that focuses on providing wealth management solutions to affluent individuals over age 50 and their families. He has more than 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. Todd Calamita is passionate about helping people have a better life. He does this by designing and implementing customized financial plans that bring clarity and confidence.
Todd is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and CERTIFIED DIVORCE FINANCIAL ANALYST® professional. His educational background includes a Bachelor of Business Administration from Ohio University. He also received a Master of Business Administration from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University. Aside from planning, he authored, Plan Smart: Conquering 10 Common Money Traps. Todd also wrote numerous articles on wide-ranging personal finance topics, from taxes to retirement accounts. He was featured in a Financial Boot Camp TV series as a volunteer. There he was showing people how to make smart decisions with their money. When he’s not working, you can find Todd spending time with his wife, Teresa, and their two sons, Colin and Cameron. He enjoys rock climbing, swimming, and traveling. Todd even has a black belt in Tang Soo Do, a Korean martial art. To learn more about Todd, connect with him on LinkedIn.
