Janesville School District insurance options still in the air
Other business
The Janesville School Board on Tuesday night:
-- Approved hiring a teacher for Van Buren Elementary's fourth grade, where the class size is two higher than the district maximum of 30.
-- Approved hiring seven part-time aides for kindergarten and first-grade classrooms around the district where class sizes are high. The added cost to the budget for the teacher and the aides is an estimated $28,272 because of "contingency" money already budgeted.
-- Heard board member Kevin Murray request a special meeting to discuss a request by employee unions to negotiate a new contract to start July 1, 2013. Board President Bill Sodemann said the board might hold a closed meeting on the subject Oct. 9, depending on advice from legal counsel.
JANESVILLE — Health insurance plans with added costs for hundreds of Janesville School District employees led to much discussion but no resolution among school board members Tuesday.
The Janesville School Board in the end ordered administration to check some facts but took no further action.
The administration and the district's insurance consultant have presented two insurance plans. The plans would replace the current coverage, which was negotiated in union contracts that expire June 30, 2013.
The two plans would require employees to pay more of their premiums or much higher deductibles starting July 1, 2013. Exactly how much they would pay has not been made clear.
Board members Kevin Murray and Karl Dommershausen said the plans save the district money by shifting costs to employees.
"I don't need to pay a consultant $34,000 a year to tell me that if I just get the employees to pay more, I'm going to save money," Murray said.
Murray said a steerage plan—in which employees would be required to see only providers in the Dean network or Mercy network, for example—could save money. He said a similar plan saves money for the city of Janesville.
Murray said he might be wrong about the savings, but the board won't know until it sees the numbers.
Dommershausen wanted to see four plans to give employees more choices, perhaps with higher premiums and lower deductibles or vice versa.
Consultant Bill Boyd told the board earlier that employee surveys and focus groups showed employees wanted the freedom to choose their providers and didn't want to be tied to just one provider, so the two plans allow that choice.
Murray wanted a steerage plan option but also what he called a "basic" plan that would be similar to what is offered now, in which employees could choose any provider they want.
Boyd was not at the meeting, but Superintendent Karen Schulte said her understanding was that Dean and Mercy had told Boyd they would not provide a steerage plan unless that plan would cover all employees.
Board members Kristin Hesselbacher and Peter Severson indicated they, too, would like to see cost comparisons of various types of insurance options.
Severson suggested the district look into joining the county and/or city of Janesville plans, which might be more attractive to Dean or Mercy.
Board member Scott Feldt said all these requests would overtax the administration and keep it from doing its job in a timely fashion.
Schulte has said she wants the question of health insurance to be wrapped up by Nov. 27 so administrators' 2012-13 contracts can be prepared with the new information by January.
The board directed Schulte to clarify whether Dean and/or Mercy would cover just some employees with a steerage plan.
Sodemann also asked that Schulte get costs for various plan options, with each plan representing about the same amount of savings to the district.
Sep 28, 2012 at 9:35 a.m.
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frogger- Every day insurance companies decide if you'll be "treated or NOT". Again, with some type of regulation and rules in place, that should end. I don't understand your resistance to a national program. Do you want insurance companies decidong your fate? They are now.
Sep 28, 2012 at 8:40 a.m.
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"analertcitizen
Sep 27, 2012 at 11:54 p.m.
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@luv~ I've done a very indepth research of Obamacare. Contrary to the Right Wing news people that you listen to the program in no way tries to diagnose patient illnesses.."
correct but they'll decide if you should be treated or NOT.
Sep 28, 2012 at 7:46 a.m.
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analertcitizen, are you aware under medicare that if someone gets a walker and needs a wheelchair in say 2 years they will not get one, it will take at least 5 years before medicare will pay for it. Seniors also have to pay for a supliment plan to cover the 20% Medicare doesn't, something I was not aware of until somewhat recently, medicare routinely rejects things many people would deem necessary. I am no fan of the insurance industry I find it to be a racket, however substituting government as the middle man is a disasterous idea. Would you ever go to Detroit for healthcare? Canada routinely sends patients over the border to Detroit, Buffalo, Seattle and many other cities for care because they are not able to handle the load. I have friends from England their son fell out of a tree when he was a kid, it took them 14 hours to see a doctor because of the backlog. Not surprising that things get log jammed when people feel that something is 'free'. I know within my own family I have people that are on assistance, for no real reason other than laziness, however one in particular goes to the doctor more in a month than I have been in the past 20 years and his reasoning is "well it's free". Healthcare is a mess no doubt but having a wife that deals with Medicare and Medicaid at her job everyday and the idiotic systems those are, tells me more government is not the answer here. It rarely is.
Sep 27, 2012 at 11:54 p.m.
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@luv~ I've done a very indepth research of Obamacare. Contrary to the Right Wing news people that you listen to the program in no way tries to diagnose patient illnesses. Your claim is pure fiction. Government is already in the equation through a massive and expensive lobbying effort by insurance companies. Do you honesty believe these right wing types?
Sep 27, 2012 at 11:23 p.m.
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Seriously? Have you read anything about Obamacare? Sorry, but I'd rather have my doctor decide what care I need - not a bunch of bureaucrats lining their pockets and flipping a coin. Keep the government out of the equation.
Sep 27, 2012 at 7:43 p.m.
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frogger- At present, most 70 year olds are receiving services from medicare and if they need a new knee, they get one. A National health care system would be no different. In fact, with regulation, the cost of a new knee could go down. Permissions from insurance companies already exist and often they are arbitrary. At least, again with regulation, they rules would be spelled out.
Sep 27, 2012 at 6:23 p.m.
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You really want the government deciding for you if you are worthy of a new knee at 70? IT is bad enough needing to get"permission" from the insurance company to treat ones' illnesses now!.
Sep 27, 2012 at 5:10 p.m.
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eagle1- People are paying high insurance premiums and high health care costs now. If we had a national plan, through tax dollars, our expenditures would shift from the high insurance/health costs to a tax burden of perhaps less outlay per month per household.Should save households(all)a significant amount of money. Insurance companies hate the idea so it must have some merit.
Sep 27, 2012 at 4:51 p.m.
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Deregulation causes price spikes. I remember when Bush the Elder deregulated the cable industry. My bill immediately increased by 25%. Cancelled it and never looked back.
Sep 27, 2012 at 3:41 p.m.
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And how does that entire system get paid for? Hasn't it been proven regulation actually increases costs of services and goods?
Sep 27, 2012 at 3:41 p.m.
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And how does that entire system get paid for? Hasn't it been proven regulation actually increases costs of services and goods?
Sep 27, 2012 at 2:29 p.m.
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Eagle1- For starters,
Health care costs are inflated. Without government regulating health care costs, hospital fees and insurance premiums, those who set costs in the health care sector have free run over the system. A national health care system would be regulated by the government, so costs overall would be reduced with a more monitored system to reduce inflated costs for tests, hospital stays and procedures. And, in some cases, hospitals might get paid instead of having to increase their costs to cover the uninsured who don't ( won't) pay.
Sep 27, 2012 at 1:46 p.m.
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analertcitizen, how would that solve these problems?
Sep 27, 2012 at 9:59 a.m.
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It sounds like you are all saying that we need a National Health Care program that is affordable to all? It would solve so many of these problems.
Sep 27, 2012 at 7:52 a.m.
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Eyeball may or may not be entirely correct but has hit on a real issue......Over the last 30 years or so, the "system" has allowed the irresponsible from all walks of life to drive costs to astronomical levels and everyone is penalized for it....This leaves some of the most responsible lower-income people with no access to care at all.
Sep 27, 2012 at 6:57 a.m.
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Millmary
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They will prolly have a mechanisim to stay with current providers... They will simply have to shoulder more of the cost burden to do it.
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It's not so much about eliminating choice... It's about a baseline plan that saves money.. Most folks will choose that baseline plan.. But others (especially those who commute from out of Dean/Mercy area) may have to pay out more to keep current coverage.. To my mind this would be reasonable.
Sep 27, 2012 at 6:22 a.m.
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I'm not against teachers paying more for their health insurance, but forcing them to leave their current doctors and get re-established with a new provider is asking too much. They need to retain their ability to choose.
Sep 27, 2012 at 6:08 a.m.
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"The Baby Boomer generation is causing health costs to go through the roof for everyone. Hopefully, after they all die, we will again be able to afford good medical for our families."
Seriously?
The Baby Boomer generation includes people born from 1946 - 1964.
Obama is a baby boomer....born August 4, 1961.
Sep 27, 2012 at 3:13 a.m.
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Teachers are gonna get the same rude awakening I got a couple of years ago in my "private sector" job. The Baby Boomer generation is causing health costs to go through the roof for everyone. Hopefully, after they all die, we will again be able to afford good medical for our families.
Sep 26, 2012 at 5:55 p.m.
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"the plans save the district money by shifting costs to employees."
Again, that says it all.
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