Will County Forest officials eye insurance changes, cost savings

Dec. 09--The Forest Preserve District of Will County expects to save $100,000 annually by making changes in its health insurance program for nonunion employees.

At a finance committee meeting Wednesday, members agreed to substantial changes to its plan, to make it "more cost effective" for the district while keeping it "affordable" for employees, said John Gerl, chief financial officer for the district.

Employees typically paid about 5 percent of the cost. That will increase to 10 percent July 1, Gerl said.

New employees hired after Jan. 1 will pay 20 percent, he said. Over the next 10 to 15 years, as employees leave through attrition and are replaced with new hires, the majority of employees will be paying 20 percent, Gerl said.

Commissioner Jim Moustis, R-Frankfort Township, said the "fairest" plan would be to have all employees paying the same percentage.

"You can't offer different benefits to different employees," Moustis said. "We need to treat everyone as fairly as we can."

Forest preserve district attorney Richard Kavanagh said they would not be discriminating by charging a different cost for the same benefits.

Gerl said the insurance costs for the district's unionized employees also is "fairly comparable" but their package is handled by the union, not the forest preserve district.

Finance Committee Chairman Ray Tuminello, R-New Lenox, said they will discuss Moustis' suggestion and consider it in the future.

According to the plan approved by the committee, the deductible would increase, per IRS regulations, to $2,700 from $2,600 for a single person, and to $5,400 from $5,200 for a family. The district was paying 50 percent of the deductible, but will now pay a flat $1,300, Gerl said.

The Forest Preserve's board of commissioners will vote on the matter at its Thursday meeting.

slafferty@tribpub.com

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