Seafarers Health and Benefits Plan

SEAFARERS HEALTH & BENEFITS PLAN SEAFARERS PENSION PLAN SEAFARERS MONEY PURCHASE PENSION PLAN 5201 Auth Way Camp Springs, Maryland 20746-4275 (301) 899-0675

Margaret R. Bowen Administrator

August 1, 2014

THIS LETTER CONTAINS IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ELIGIBILITY

FOR HEALTH BENEFITS FOR GREAT LAKES PARTICIPANTS.

Dear Plan Participant:

The Seafarers Health and Benefits Plan (“SHBP” or “Plan”) was required to change its eligibility rule in 2014 in order to comply with the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, so that no one would have to wait more than 90 days (of employment) to qualify for benefits. The Plan sent a letter to you dated October 15, 2013 about this new rule, which went into effect on January 1, 2014.

Due to the severe weather during the winter of 2013-2014, vessels on the Great Lakes were laid up for a much longer period than usual. As a result, many participants employed on Great Lakes’ vessels were unable to work a sufficient number of days at the beginning of the year to maintain their eligibility for health benefits under the new rule.

After review of this issue, the Board of Trustees agreed to make some modifications in the rule to assist these employees. The Trustees decided that Great Lakes employees who were eligible for SHBP benefits as of June 30, 2014 will remain eligible through August 30, 2014. In addition, the Trustees have changed the eligibility rule for Great Lakes employees, so that the eligibility periods will more accurately reflect the time periods when vessels are operational.

SHBP eligibility for existing employees is now based upon a 6 month period, instead of based on the prior calendar year. The original new rule included two eligibility periods: January 1 through June 30, and July 1 through December 31. This is still the rule for Deep Sea employees. However the Trustees have changed the two (2) eligibility periods for Great Lakes employees. For Great Lakes employees, the year will be divided into the following two periods: March 1 to August 31, and September 1 to February 28th (or February 29th if it is a leap year) of the following calendar year. Page 2 August 1, 2014 Letter to Great Lakes Employees

New Summary Plan Description Booklets (SPDs)

The Seafarers Plans have recently revised the Summary Plan Description Booklets (SPDs) for Seafarers Health and Benefits Plan (CorePlus and Core benefit levels), Seafarers Pension Plan, and Seafarers Money Purchase Pension Plan to explain benefit changes that have been made in recent years. Enclosed are the revised booklet(s) for the Plan(s) that apply to you according to the Plans’ records. Important Note: The change in eligibility periods for Great Lakes employees described above is not in this booklet. Please keep a copy of this letter with your SPD.

These booklets contain information about the benefits available from the Plans. You may wish to discard previous versions of these booklets which are now out of date. Keep these booklets in a convenient place so that you may refer to them when necessary.

These new booklets, along with other important Plan information, are also available on the SIU website, www.seafarers.org under the “Member Benefits” tab. You may want to check the website periodically for Plan communications or benefit applications.

As a reminder, you can register for access to the “Member Portal” on the website. The Member Portal allows you to check your eligibility for benefits from the Seafarers Health and Benefits Plan as well as view your beneficiary information to see if it is up to date. If you do not agree with the information on the Portal, would like to request a copy of a Plan SPD booklet, or you have other questions about your benefits, please contact the Plan at 1-800-252-4674, or write to: Seafarers Plans, 5201 Auth Way, Camp Springs, MD 20746.

Sincerely,

Margaret R. Bowen Administrator

Enclosures