Benefits Committee Meeting, October 14, 2003.
Note from Carol Shannon: Here is the report that Don Mathre presented to the MSU Benefits committee
on 10/14. As you have probably seen in the paper recently, medical and
pharmacy costs everywhere are continuing to rise and there is a concern as
to what shape our plan will be in in two years. The MSU Benefits committee
hopes to meet with President Gamble in November.
Benefits Overview:
Blue-Cross/Blue Shield of Montana which administers the medical insurance
program for MSU employees has reported that because of inflation and
increased utilization of the health system that costs are up 9.5% in
Montana and 13.2% in the USA. Pharmacy costs are going up about 20%/year
in both Montana and the rest of the United States. Drugs as a proportion
of claims is at 16% in Montana but 19% in the USA.
For the last fiscal year, the benefits program for the University system
had an ending balance of about $200,000, which is very good. For the
current fiscal year, we are predicting a balance in the black of about $1.5
million. This will allow us to maintain our reserves at a level to cover 2
months of costs and equals about $7.5 million. Therefore, because of the
increased state contribution of $44/month last year, and $50/month this
year plus a small additional premium increase from the employee (about
$10/month), we are in very good shape at the current time. One reason for
the good balance sheet is that more and more people are using the HMO
program. But an HMO program is not yet available in Bozeman.
Looking to the future, is problematic since we don't know whether the state
will increase it's contribution. This will be determined by the next
Legislature.
We are looking at the Wellness Program to see if there are things that it
could do more things to help people reduce their risks from various health
conditions. Getting more people to participate in the WELLCHECK fair in
November would certainly be a good starting point. Currently, only about
50% of our employees take advantage of this service.