Louisiana Board Votes to Cut Health Benefits for State Employees
The Louisiana State Employees Group Benefits Program board of trustees on Jan. 8 approved a "substantial rollback in benefits" for state employees and "set the stage" for a possible 12.5% premium increase, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports. The changes are designed to save the "financially troubled" Group Benefits program nearly $43 million in the next fiscal year. The group ended the 1999-2000 fiscal year on June 30 with a $93 million deficit and has added about $3 million each month to the deficit since then. Potential benefits changes include:
- Requiring enrollees to pay half the cost of each prescription drug purchase, up to $50;
- Raising the annual deductible for active state employees from $300 to $500;
- Raising emergency room visit deductibles from $100 to $150 per visit;
- Raising PPO enrollee' out-of-pocket maximum for "eligible" medical services from $500 per year for to $1,000;
- Eliminating coverage for glucometers because some pharmaceutical companies provide them for free;
- Implementing a "pre-existing condition" clause for those wanting to join the group benefits program that would require new workers treated for a medical condition in the previous six months to wait 12 months before receiving coverage.
