In a year when school districts were already trying to keep budgets tight to appease voters after nearly a third were voted down the first time last year, they’re facing a double-digit premium rate increase on health insurance for their employees. Over 34,000 educators and retirees use Vermont Educational Health Initiative, which said premium rates will jump up 11.9% after increasing, on average, 16.4% last year and over 12% the year before. This means that over a three-year span, rates will have increased by just under 41%.”Health insurance has gone up over 40%, which is just unsustainable, and that’s something that the districts don’t have control over,” Brooke Olsen-Farrell, superintendent of the Slate Valley Unified Union School District said. It comes at a time when districts are already looking to keep budgets lean but also provide quality education. “We’re prioritizing teaching and learning and students, so that might mean we have to reduce in another area like capitol improvements or something that is going to have a cost burden later on,” said Ryan Heraty, superintendent of Lamoille South Supervisory Union. It was also suggested that dental rates would be increased, but the insurance board voted against it, “to provide modest financial relief to school boards and employees in the face of rising health insurance premiums,” said the letter. Heraty said it still speaks to the bigger picture of education finance reform as the next legislative session looms just over two months away. “We’re anticipating it’s going to be another challenging budget year, and so we’re going in assuming that we’re going to have be as lean and efficient as possible, hoping that the Legislature will take a hard look at the education finance system and hopefully have the courage to make some significant changes for the betterment of our children,” he said. When asked why such a steep increase, Mike Fisher, a member of the board, sent a statement.”This year, factors that contributed to the proposed rate include that Humira (a very expensive specialty drug) will go out of patent and thus be available in biosimilar form, and that hospital budgets were adjusted downward by the GMCB,” he said. He also added people are also just using health and dental services more after COVID-19, therefore increasing hospital costs.
In a year when school districts were already trying to keep budgets tight to appease voters after nearly a third were voted down the first time last year, they’re facing a double-digit premium rate increase on health insurance for their employees.
Over 34,000 educators and retirees use Vermont Educational Health Initiative, which said premium rates will jump up 11.9% after increasing, on average, 16.4% last year and over 12% the year before.
Advertisement
This means that over a three-year span, rates will have increased by just under 41%.
“Health insurance has gone up over 40%, which is just unsustainable, and that’s something that the districts don’t have control over,” Brooke Olsen-Farrell, superintendent of the Slate Valley Unified Union School District said.
It comes at a time when districts are already looking to keep budgets lean but also provide quality education.
“We’re prioritizing teaching and learning and students, so that might mean we have to reduce in another area like capitol improvements or something that is going to have a cost burden later on,” said Ryan Heraty, superintendent of Lamoille South Supervisory Union.
It was also suggested that dental rates would be increased, but the insurance board voted against it, “to provide modest financial relief to school boards and employees in the face of rising health insurance premiums,” said the letter.
Heraty said it still speaks to the bigger picture of education finance reform as the next legislative session looms just over two months away.
“We’re anticipating it’s going to be another challenging budget year, and so we’re going in assuming that we’re going to have be as lean and efficient as possible, hoping that the Legislature will take a hard look at the education finance system and hopefully have the courage to make some significant changes for the betterment of our children,” he said.
When asked why such a steep increase, Mike Fisher, a member of the board, sent a statement.
“This year, factors that contributed to the proposed rate include that Humira (a very expensive specialty drug) will go out of patent and thus be available in biosimilar form, and that hospital budgets were adjusted downward by the GMCB,” he said.
He also added people are also just using health and dental services more after COVID-19, therefore increasing hospital costs.
