HEALTH BENEFITS UPDATE
What’s ahead for State
Health Benefi ts Plan in 2018?
Well, it looks like our efforts are paying off and
we are starting to get some good news with regards
to 2018 SHBP Rates.
Over the last week, we have received prelimi-
nary notification that rate renewals will be around
zero percent for actives in the State Health Bene-
fit Plans, both State and Local. This is contingent
upon renewal of the changes to the prescription
plan that we enacted last year (mandatory generic
and use of the Express Scripts national preferred
formulary). While the Local rates at the time of this
printing reflect a 2.5 percent increase for actives,
the assignment of excess reserves will allow us to
keep the rate at zero.
This also will hold true for early retirees on for both State and
Local, which includes our early retirees. Unfortunately, our Medi-
care retirees are not in such a good place, as the increase in their
premiums will be 13.5 percent and 10.6 percent for State and Local,
respectively. This is largely due to the fact that under federal law,
Medicare retirees cannot participate in the cost savings plans with
LPP UPDATE
Legal Protection Plan changes for 2018
Several months ago, I wrote an article that clarified coverage in
Target of Internal and Target of Criminal matters. After writing it
and looking back on the plan history, it seemed like a good idea
in the current climate to expand coverage in all cases in which
a members are ordered to give a statement, even when they are
not the target of an internal or criminal matter. After contempla-
tion at the next committee meeting, LPP Chair Sister Hammond
read to the membership the changes which were accepted by the
Board of Delegates.
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NEW JERSEY COPS
regards to prescriptions.
The one variable that is not included in the rates above is the
award of a new contract for the State’s Pharmacy Benefit Manager
(PBM). This month, a contract was awarded to OptimRX, which is
a national PBM. As of January 1, 2018, your prescriptions will be
handled through them. Through this bid process and the use of the
reverse auction through Truvaris, a change that was urged on by the
labor side of the committee, we will see significant savings in 2018
on the prescription side as well. I will have another update and the
exact rates for 2018 after the state’s actuary is able to determine the
exact rates with the prescription changes.
In the interest of continually searching for cost savings, a num-
ber of us, including NJ State PBA President Colligan and Executive
Vice President Marc Kovar, State Police NCO President Pete Stilia-
nessis and STFA President Mike Zanyor met with the New Jersey
Doctor-Patient Alliance about third-party administrator billing
with regards to insurance billing. After a productive meeting, we
agreed that we have a great deal in common and will work on issues
as long as we are going in the same direction.
■ JULY 2017
This action, along with other clarifications in wording, once
again increased coverage for our members without raising the
contributions in eight years. This shows the strength of a plan that
is completely owned and operated by our members, for our mem-
bers.
Now, while preliminary numbers have shown a higher than ex-
pected number of claims in this area, as we do with everything, we
will continue to monitor the coverage for maximum exposure to
the plan. - Kevin Lyons