For decades most Pierce County employees paid nothing for their health insurance. That changed this year as the county struggled to balance its budget at a time of skyrocketing medical costs.
The cost of providing employee health insurance was set to rise 11 percent, or about $4 million.
After a year of budget cutting, County Executive Pat McCarthy last fall decided the county could no longer afford to pay the full cost of employee health insurance. She and Deputy Executive Kevin Phelps argued that most other governments already require employees to share the cost. They said the county would not pick up any of the increased cost of health insurance premiums in 2010.
Under collective bargaining agreements, the county negotiates health care benefits annually with 19 labor unions. After months of negotiations, employees now have two health insurance systems:
About 1,700 employees remain in the county’s system. They can choose from among four employee-only plans or four employee and family plans.
For the most popular plan, they pay $50 a month for employee-only health insurance and $90 a month for employee and family coverage. Employees pay 4.5 percent of the total cost of the employee-only plan and 7.6 percent of the cost of the employee and family plan.
The county kicks in about $1,054 for that employee-only plan and $1,011 for the employee and family plan.
About 1,300 employees represented by various unions elected to join the Teamsters Union health insurance plan. The county contributes about $990 a month toward the union health insurance plan. Employees don’t pay any of the cost of the premium.
The Teamsters health insurance plan is “managed extremely well,” so it can offer a better plan for less money than the county, Mary Ann Brennan, the union’s public sector coordinator, said in a recent interview.
It remains to be seen whether the dual system will become a permanent fixture. The county and its unions must negotiate benefits for 2011.
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