School District Ponders Changes to Teacher Health Benefits

Earlier this week the Sarasota County School Board heard plans that may help reduce ever increasing employee health care costs.

Employees in the district currently have four plans to choose from: high HMO, low HMO, high PPO and low PPO.

According to the district, 81 percent of current school board employees do not contribute to their health care plan based on choosing the employee only plans with no spouse, children or family coverage.

On Tuesday the board listened to a presentation from the Financial Advisory Committee and an outside consultant, AON Hewitt. 

“The option of doing nothing is not a good option,” superintendant Lori White said.

Should the district do nothing and make no change to its current plans, by 2012 district health care costs will have increased 10.9 percent.

“While it’s never a good time, we need to take back something,” said Murray Blueglass of the Financial Advisory Committee. “The health insurance benefits and plans need to be looked at. There are a variety of scenarios for you to consider as a board.”

The Financial Advisory Committee and AON Hewitt presented six options: 

1. Keep current plans with no benefit changes but add employee-only contributions to three plans. By 2012, this plan will increase health care costs by 5 percent.
2. Minor design changes to current four plans and add employee-only contribution for three plans. By 2012, this plan will increase district health care costs by 3 percent
3. Aggressive design changes to current four plans and no employee-only contribution (cost share strategy). By 2012 this plan would increase district health care costs by 3 percent.
4. Dual option HMO/PPO with no employee-only contribution. By 2012 this plan would keep health care costs the same.
5. Dual option consumer directed health plans with HRA and no employee-only contribution. By 2012 this plan would decrease health care costs by 3 percent.
6. Dual option HMO/PPO with employee only contributions on the HMO. This plan would decrease health care costs 3 percent by 2012.

“How can we get where we need to be in a humane way,” asked financial advisory committed member Mike Ferrucci. “Short-term fear or short-term concerns, how can we bridge that concern to get that point where we all need to be together.”

Changes to benefits would have to be approved by both the school board and the Sarasota Classified Teachers Association.

“This year’s collective bargaining is to set the framework for the future,” Blueglass said. “For staff to absorb some of the costs that are simply out of control.”

Board member Carol Todd said that while she appreciates being able to provide coverage to employees, the district has been overpaying.

“I don’t want to minimize the dollar amount, what we provide for our employees,” Todd said. “It appears [however] our employees are buying a lower priced car but getting a luxury car. Health care has changed and insurance has changed but we have not really aligned what we are doing with those changes.”

As the presentation concluded, Financial Advisory Committee chair Robert Windom said that it is never fun to talk about cuts, but if you think of the students first it has to be done.

“We hope that what you have heard [during the presentation] will be valuable in these negotiations [with the teacher’s union],” Windom said. “Children get the greatest benefits if everybody above that level has to make a certain sacrifice.”