For those of you who missed Mark Snyder's link, like I did, I will provide it again. http://www.skywaynews.net/articles/2004/03/08/news/news03.txt
It is also time for me to make a full disclosure. I work for one of the major health plan providers is this state so I am very familiar with product that was described. The gist of the attached link is a reduction of health care premiums for Minneapolis city employees in exchange for a higher financial risk for employees (members) seeking health care. The company I work for offers such a package and I declined. I decided the risk was not worth the premium savings for me. In a nutshell, I would have a $1,500 deductible, my company would contribute $750 per year towards that deductible, and my premium savings would be $750 per year. If I stay healthy, I save $750 per year. If I maximize my use of health care, it costs me an additional $750 per year. I am approaching the time of life where my health care needs will rise. It was a different story for me 20 years ago, and it may be a different story for you. It would not be a good product for someone with a chronic health condition. Bringing this back to Minneapolis and the Transit Strike, Minneapolis did offer a Blue Cross package similar to mine to their employees. The net result was a savings in health care expense due to giving the employees (members) a financial incentive in how their healthcare dollars are spent. Packages like this will become increasingly common in the next few years as companies look to reduce their healthcare expense. Packages like this need to be considered when evaluating healthcare options. Mark, I thank you in providing this link to everyone. I think it is extremely valuable to offer alternatives, and I hope the Met Council does put this option on the table for negotiation. Tom Searles Waconia, Twp. Blowing the gravel dust out of my head and trying to pay attention to what is really happening to our planet. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Snyder" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Thomas Searles" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, March 12, 2004 7:41 AM Subject: Re: [Mpls] Transit Strike -- What are your answers? > I gave you an alternative when I posted the link to the story about how > Minneapolis reorganized it's health care coverage in a way that helped both > the employer and the employees to save money without having to further > impact other programs. snip... REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
