The City Council has refused to authorize an agreement between the city and Horizon Healthcare Services for dental insurance for municipal employees.
While the city administration argued last week that Horizon Healthcare offers the same coverage employees previously enjoyed under Delta Dental until Dec. 31, 2011, angry workers say the plans are not comparable.
City employees and members of the council also said last week they were blindsided when they learned that Business Administrator Jack Kelly entered into a two-year dental insurance contract with Horizon without the involvement of the council or municipal workers’ unions.
‘It was done so last minute that it feels like something’s wrong.’ – Gregory Corrado
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Angry members of the Jersey City Police Officers’ Benevolent Association are now calling on the city to fire Kelly for, in their opinion, overstepping his authority, even though the dental plan change could save the city money.
Corrado: Plans are the same
The city is proposing a switch from Delta Dental to Horizon Dental Choice for in-network coverage and Horizon Dental Healthcare Services of New Jersey for out-of-network coverage. The change, which requires the approval of the council, will cost the city $1.1 million and $2.7 million, respectively, over a two-year period for the two plans.
Assistant Business Administrator Gregory Corrado, who attended the Jan. 11 City Council meeting on Kelly’s behalf, said the move to Horizon will save millions since the city won’t have to pay hefty increases in premiums.
“We [regularly] examine all of our benefits, and they’ve changed over the years. This is just one example of the city trying to save money,” Corrado stated. “This is just the course of doing business. If you want to see the exact coverage, we’d be happy to provide that. I can assure you, it’s the same coverage [as the Delta plan]…It was done so last-minute that it feels like something’s wrong. In actuality, there isn’t.”
Corrado explained that in November or December of last year, the city’s health care broker presented Kelly with price quotes from Delta Dental that included a four percent increase in premiums over what the city had paid from Jan. 1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2011. Kelly, Corrado said, told the broker to get quotes from at least one other insurance provider.
The broker came back with in-network and out-of-network price quotes from Horizon that were, Corrado said, identical to what the city had paid Delta from Jan. 1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2011.
“Because of that, the business administrator decided to go with Horizon for the same coverage without an increase,” Corrado said.
Council, unions: Prove it
But city workers – particularly members of the Jersey City Police Officers Benevolent Association (POBA) and the Uniformed Fire Fighters Association of Jersey City, who showed up in force at the Jan. 11 meeting – challenged the assertion that the coverage is the same. Meanwhile, members of the city council bristled over the lack of information regarding the Horizon plans.
“I understand what the business administrator is trying to do. He’s trying to save the city money, and he’s doing it on the backs of the employees,” said Joseph Krajnik, president of the firefighters’ union, which is not calling on the city to replace Kelly. But, Krajnik added, “One of my firefighters came up and [told me] that under Delta Dental his co-pay was $70. Under Horizon it’s $138. So clearly, that’s a difference.”
Other firefighters and police officers who spoke out at the meeting said they have also noticed differences between Delta and Horizon.
“We have no idea what this policy looks like,” Richardson told Corrado, noting that council members were not given any details on the Horizon plans. “We should at least have a copy of what it is that we’re getting.”
In calling for Kelly’s removal, POBA President Jerry DeCicco said he “has a proven record of undermining the city council and taxpayers, and overstepping his authority. We appreciate the council for what they did by pulling the [resolution] changing the dental plan from Delta to Horizon. We believe it is a sub-standard plan.”
Ultimately, the council pulled two resolutions on the dental plans from the agenda and asked the city to provide additional information before the resolutions are put on the agenda again.
Since the city began paying Horizon for dental insurance effective Jan. 1, 2012, employees are covered through either Horizon Dental Choice or Horizon Dental Healthcare Services of New Jersey. But the city’s two-year contract with Horizon could be in jeopardy.
E-mail E. Assata Wright at awright@hudsonreporter.com.