City authority to pay more for medical benefits

Oct. 24--Hazleton City Authority will pay $50,000 more per year for medical benefits for its workforce, with the increase bringing total costs to about $1.1 million annually, its business manager reported Thursday.

With its new payment cycle for employee medical benefits beginning Oct. 1, authority board member John Nilles asked management to report on costs for the upcoming year.

Business Manager Larry Patton reported that costs have increased by about 5 percent -- or by about $50,000 per year for the Blue Cross medical benefits package.

The authority board ratified a five-year contract with the 35-member United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union Local 8567-02 last July.

The contract included changes to the major medical insurance package by shifting employees from a traditional plan offered by Blue Cross to a preferred provider organization (PPO) that authority directors said gives employees the same hospital and doctor options but reduces costs.

Excluding rate increases, the package was expected to save the authority $117,000 per year, officials said at the time.

The $50,000 increase in medical insurance costs that was announced Thursday was within an amount anticipated by the authority, Patton said. Costs did not increase last year, he said.

The roughly $1.1 million the authority will pay this year for medical benefits is one of HCA's larger expenses and accounts for about 10 percent of its budget, Patton said.

Payment options

The authority collected $15,228.98 through an online payment program it launched 37 days ago, Patton reported.

Collections have increased since the program was first launched and average about $412 per day, he said. Some of the larger daily collections were tallied in the $1,150-range while other notable collections were tallied at $600 and $700.

The authority launched the online payment program through GovTeller and gives customers the option of visiting HCA's website at www

.hcawater.org and clicking on a link that guides them through the payment program. The program accepts payment by credit card, debit card or e-check.

The program costs HCA nothing but customers who use the service pay a small "convenience fee."

Customers can use the online program for paying water and trash bills.

While discussing payment options, Director Dave Sosar asked if the authority can investigate offering customers the option of paying bills through an automatic checking program.

Patton said the authority can accept such payments if customers work out an arrangement with their respective banks.

"We can accept (payment) from their banks," Patton explained. "Their bank issues the auto check to us."

Sosar said he believes more customers would be more willing to pay through an automatic checking arrangement than use the online program or participate in a "lock box" service agreement that allows Landmark Bank to process water and garbage payments.

Meters

Contractors from Keystone Utilities installed 12,578 "remote register" water meters in place of some 15,000 outdated models throughout its service area, Engineer John Synoski reported.

The project began in July 2014 and the authority is using a $4 million loan from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure and Investment Authority (PennVEST) to complete the work.

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