All GIC Employee and non-Medicare Retiree/Survivor health plans include a deductible. This is a fixed dollar amount you must pay before your health plan begins paying benefits for you or your covered dependent(s). The deductible is on a fiscal year to make it easier for members to change health plan carriers at Annual Enrollment.
The Group Insurance Commission (GIC) was established by the Legislature in 1955 to provide and administer health insurance and other benefits to the Commonwealth's employees and retirees, and their dependents and survivors. The GIC also covers housing and redevelopment authorities' personnel, participating municipalities, and retired municipal employees and teachers in certain governmental units.
Health coverage options include an Indemnity plan, Point of Service (POS) plans, Preferred Provider-type Organizations (PPOs), an Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO), and several HMO plans. As part of its UniCare state indemnity and active employee Tufts Health plans, it manages mental health/substance abuse benefits and also manages pharmacy benefits for the indemnity plans. For active state employees only, the GIC offers a long term disability (LTD) program, two pre-tax employee programs - Health Care Spending Account (HCSA) and Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP), and for managers, legislators, legislative staff and certain Executive Office staff, a dental/vision plan. The GIC offers a discount vision plan for Commonwealth retirees and a dental plan for state and certain municipal retirees
The Group Insurance Commission is a quasi-independent state agency governed by a seventeen-member Commission appointed by the Governor. Commission members encompass a range of interests and expertise including labor and retirees, the public interest, the administration, and health economics.
The GIC’s FY2017 appropriation is $2.1 billion. There are currently over 250,000 enrollees and over 436,000 people covered by the GIC.
This is the plan Town employees said they did not want to change to.
The idea of looking at GIC was to see if changing would save the whole Town money, as in reducing the amount of tax dollars spent on Town employee health insurance.
posted by Jeff Bennett
Jeff just so you understand the GIC is a commission and NOT a plan.
ReplyDeleteA plan is like Blue Cross Blue Shield.
The people who now these things and understand it voted after we were told there is no guarantee we could get a plan but only might get what we choose.
The price could actually have been higher after our pool of people were considered.
Our pool has had higher than normal high cost patients and that has like the workers comp increases been the factor in the cost increases to the town.
All towns offer good benefits to keep and attract employees as the wage scale we know is of a lower than private level.
Beat all the drums you want but in the end we know your history and how you come across.
Templeton has a much better health plan than surrounding towns. The town could save money by opting for a plan that has a little higher copays/prescriptions and a tier hospital plan. ie going to Boston hospitals cost the employee more than going to Heywood.
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