As you may have heard, the State has approved new health insurance plans to be offered during open enrollment from October 17-November 11, 2011.
Please take the time to review CWA's "Report on Changes to the State Health Benefits Program and Recommendations for Open Enrollment, October 2011" which describes the State's existing and new health care plans in detail, analyzes the cost to members now and over the next few years, and gives you a bottom-line guidance for selecting the right plan for your needs. This report covers members in the State, Judiciary, and County and Municipal Government who are enrolled in the State Health Benefits Plan (SHBP).
Open enrollment for the SHBP will run from October 17 - November 11, 2011. This is quickly approaching, so please read our report now and carefully consider your options.
The existing plans of NJ Direct 15, Aetna 15 HMO and Cigna 15 HMO all remain unchanged. We strongly recommend that you stay with your current plan and do not switch plans this year.
There are 9 new plans being offered as well - which we recommend you do not select this year - with higher copays, higher deductibles, and lower premiums. Horizon, Aetna and Cigna will all offer versions of these new plans.
After studying the cost vs. benefit impact on our members, the Union recommends NOT changing plans this year because our contribution costs will mostly be the same regardless of the plan you select, but the benefits are very different. The actual cost of members' health care contributions will not increase until July 2012, and then there will be a small increase only for a small number of members. If you switch to the new plans now, there are potentially large differences in copay costs for families and in deductible/out-of-pocket costs for all members, so we recommend no change in plans at this time.
Thank you,
Adam Liebtag
President, Local 1036
