Several of the 42 town employees who met with the town administrator and representatives from Oxford Insurance earlier this month voiced concerns about the town’s move to switch to that company from Blue Cross and Blue Shield.
A sometimes heated debate at the meeting centered around whether the newly proposed insurance package was indeed equal to the health care package employees currently enjoy.
Secaucus employees, unlike the private sector and some governmental workers elsewhere, do not have to pay a share of their own insurance costs. In the case of police officers, the insurance package is part of the contract with the town, stipulating the exact level of coverage.
Town officials are looking to negotiate a lower health insurance package for town employees, switching from Blue Cross Blue Shield to the Oxford plan.
The cost savings to the town could be in excess of $1 million a year.
Town Administrator Anthony Iacono said the cost of insurance has increased every year. “We currently pay $3.1 million a year without dental coverage,” he said. The town has roughly 224 employees. The average cost for each employee is about $18,000 a year. “We have some employees whose starting salary is $17,000. That means we are paying more for that person’s health care than we are for his or her salary.”
Iacono said that the town has fought each increase over the years, many times negotiating to lower the increase, but costs still rise at an unreasonable rate, as much as 18 percent a year.
Some employees are upset with plan
Several employees, who spoke after their meeting with the town but did not wish to have their names used, claimed that the town failed to prove to them that the new plan was the same as the old plan.
“We were told that the Oxford plan would be equal or better,” said one town employee. “But they haven’t proved that it’s equal.”
Employees noted that the Oxford plan has a list of doctors that often does not include the doctors many employees currently see. In fact, many doctors, they said, are unwilling to accept the Oxford plan as they currently accept Blue Cross Blue Shield.
“Some of our doctors said they won’t honor it,” one employee said.
“That is one of the differences,” admitted Iacono, “but we have addressed this. Oxford has assured us that if an employee wishes to go to his or her own doctor, he or she can. And this would be at the same 80/20 ratio Oxford offers for its own doctors. The employee would have to pay the bill out of pocket and get reimbursed.”
Another employee, however, said this puts a burden on the employees if the bill is significant.
“If we have to pay cash out of pocket for something like surgery, that means we would have to take it out of the bank, or lose interest before we got it back,” one man said.
Iacono, however, said the average payback time is slightly over two weeks – not a significant issue for most medical bills – and that in extenuating circumstances, the town would find ways to help bridge the gap.
The problem for some of the employees, who do not feel confident in the change, is once they agree to the switch and if Oxford proves less of a policy, the town might not be able to go back to Blue Cross Blue Shield.
“We’ve been told that if we drop Blue Cross Blue Shield we can’t go back to it,” one employee said.
One key area of savings is the prescription plan, which is included in the basic rates for Oxford, while Blue Cross & Blue Shield charges extra. The Oxford plan also does not have maximum payments in numerous areas such as x-ray therapy, while Blue Cross does.
Several police officers were adamant about not changing carriers, complaining that it won’t be equal coverage.
“Why are they hurting us and why are they hurting our families,” an employee asked. “This could be the difference between life and death.”
No restrictions, just red tape
Iacono called the protests “resistance to change,” and insisted that the Oxford plan is a better plan that cost less money.
“We have thoroughly looked at this and made the comparison. This plan will match the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan in every area. We have that guarantee. And we also have other features that Blue Cross Blue Shield does not have. This includes hospice care, and health club reimbursements. Blue Cross Blue Shield has no eye glass program, this plan does.”
Iacono said other municipalities have the Oxford plan, such as Guttenberg in Hudson County.
“The Secaucus school district has this plan,” Iacono said. “And we have heard of no complaints about it there.”
The issue is expected to come up again at the May 27 council meeting, when several employees said they would appear to challenge the change.
“I know people are going to show up at the meeting,” Iacono said. “But we’re we caught between keeping our workers insured and keeping taxes down in our community, and we thought this was a way we could do both.”