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Gov. Markell seeks ways to cover rising state employee health costs

Delaware Public Media
/
Delaware Public Media

State employees could see their health insurance costs rise under a plan from the Markell Administration.

Gov. Jack Markell (D-Delaware) set aside $26.1 million in his proposed fiscal year 2016 budget to help make the Group Health Fund solvent. But that move, coupled with increases in premiums by between two and eight dollars a month, still leaves about a $60 million deficit.

“Despite the fact that we’ve proposed putting an additional $26 million of taxpayer money into the fund, there’s still a significant shortfall so that’s where we are,” Markell told Delaware Public Media.

Markell says expensive hospitalizations and increased costs in prescription drugs are fueling the problem.

“This is really a problem of math and so the fund has to be balanced and what has happened is they’ve gone all the way through the reserve,” said Markell.

To close that gap, the State Employee Benefits Committee is weighing increasing deductibles by $500 for an individual and $1,000 for families, reducing erectile dysfunction medication benefits and increasing prescription and lab fee co-pays.

Those options haven’t sat well with unions or state lawmakers in the House on both sides of the aisle, who issued press releases calling for different solutions and a delay in any action.

The Committee is expected to vote on a plan next week.