BENEFITS BOARD OK’S PREMIUM RATES FOR 2009

The Public Employees Benefits Board today (Wednesday, July 9) approved the state employee health insurance rates for 2009.

They also voted to ask the Legislature to ask the Legislature to extend benefits to opposite-sex domestic partners.

The rates for three plans will go down while the rates for three will go up.

The PEBB action should not be confused with the contract negotiations on the funding of health insurance benefits that start tomorrow (Thursday, July 10). The PEBB bases its actions on the already-negotiated percentage share in the contracts and state budget. Employees currently pick up 12 percent of premium costs and the employer pays 88 percent. If premium costs go down, the dollar amount paid by employees for their 12 percent share goes down. If costs go up, the dollar amount goes up.

The plans with rate decreases are the Uniform Medical Plan, Kaiser Classic and Kaiser Value. Those three plans now account for 57 percent of state employees in a health plan, with all but 2 percent in the UMP.

The rate decreases for those plans are:

Uniform Medical Plan—Employee share goes from $28 a month in 2008 to $26 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $66/mo. in 2008 to $62/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $49/mo. in 2008 to $46/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $87/mo. in 2008 to $82/mo. in 2009.

Kaiser Classic-- Employee share goes from $101 a month in 2008 to $76 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $212/mo. in 2008 to $162/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $177/mo. in 2008 to $133/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $288/mo. in 2008 to $219/mo. in 2009.

Kaiser Value-- Employee share goes from $59 a month in 2008 to $33 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $128/mo. in 2008 to $76/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $103/mo. in 2008 to $58/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $172/mo. in 2008 to $101/mo. in 2009.

The three plans with rate increases are Group Health Classic, Group Health Value and Aetna PEP.

Group Health Classic, with about 22 percent of all state employees enrolled, comes in with a dramatic 13.3 percent hike. Health Care Authority staff explained that Group Health attributed its increased premium costs to a spike in the carrier’s costs and demand for services by enrollees.

Pressed by Federation Executive Director Greg Devereux, a PEBB member, HCA Executive Director Steve Hill said he and staff planned to meet with the new management team at Group Health later this month to get answers about the carrier’s increased costs and whether it’s a trend or not.

Here are the three plans that will have rate increases in 2009:

Group Health Classic-- Employee share goes from $74 a month in 2008 to $107 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $158/mo. in 2008 to $224/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $130/mo. in 2008 to $187/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $214/mo. in 2008 to $304/mo. in 2009.

Group Health Value-- Employee share goes from $20 a month in 2008 to $25 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $50/mo. in 2008 to $60/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $35/mo. in 2008 to $44/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $65/mo. in 2008 to $79/mo. in 2009.

Aetna PEP-- Employee share goes from $104 a month in 2008 to $112 a month in 2009; employee and spouse—from $218/mo. in 2008 to $234/mo. in 2009; employee and children—from $182/mo. in 2008 to $196/mo. in 2009; and full family—from $296/mo. in 2008 to $318/mo. in 2009.

The PEBB also approved some benefit improvements, including a hearing aid benefit from $300 maximum for Group Health and Kaiser and $400 maximum for Aetna and UMP, with an $800 maximum every 36 months.

The state will continue to pay the premium costs for the three dental plans: DeltaCare, Willamette Dental and Uniform Dental Plan.

The changes take effect Jan. 1, 2009.

The Health Care Authority has more information on the PEBB website at http://www.pebb.hca.wa.gov/.

Open enrollment will be later this fall, from late October to late November. Benefits fairs where you can get in-person information if you’re considering switching plans will also take place during the open enrollment period.

The PEBB also acted on a proposal to expand health benefits to opposite-sex domestic partners of PEBB enrollees. On a 3-2 vote, the PEBB adopted the following proposal to the Legislature:

“Resolved, that the PEB Board hereby requests that the Legislature and Governor provide the Health Care Authority financing and authority to extend PEBB benefits to the Opposite Sex Domestic Partners of PEBB participants.”

Devereux voted with the majority.

Benefits were extended to same-sex domestic partners in 2001.