FAYETTEVILLE — Gov. Mike Beebe won’t call a special legislative session to put cash into the struggling public school employee health insurance system until there's agreement among lawmakers on both a short-term fix and a long-term solution, he said Tuesday.
Sen. Johnny Key, R-Mountain Home, told reporters Monday there's no consensus yet among lawmakers on what the solution might be. He expects several more hearings before lawmakers come up with a plan, Key said. Suggestions so far include restructuring the insurance plan or allow school districts to seek their own insurance coverage, he said.
Any plan will require money, and not just a one-time payment, the governor told a noon meeting of the Northwest Arkansas Political Animals Club. About 200 people attended the meeting at the Guesthouse Inn in Fayetteville.
“I’ve lived through special sessions where the governor didn’t have a solution,” said Beebe, a former state senator. “I’m not going to call one until there’s a consensus on suggested options for both a short-term and a long-term solution.”
Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Bigelow, said Monday he would welcome a call for a special session to head off an expected 50 percent increase in health insurance premiums set to take effect next year. The state Department of Finance and Administration’s Employee Benefits Division estimates up to $60 million would be needed before Jan. 1 to keep the rates for public school employees from increasing.
The system has a long history of paying out more than it takes in, Beebe said. Half those eligible to participate in the state-run system don’t join. Those who do are caught in a declining pool of people taking the insurance and paying premiums. In the last legislative session, the state put $8 million into the system to cover an expected deficit. The money was needed to reach the end of the current year, he said.
This is an actuarial problem, a business problem, the governor said. Those who believe this is a sudden crisis should go read the minutes of public meetings on the topic, he said. The issue came before legislative hearings in December, Beebe said.
An audience member said teachers are being told the increase is caused in part by federal health care reform.
“That’s the kind of claim that makes people want to give up public service,” Beebe replied. “That is unrelated to rational truth. The system is paying out more than it’s taking in. It’s not a problem of new vintage.”
The State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Board last month approved reducing the benefits and increasing the premiums for the three plans it administers. The options cover about 83,000 people, including 47,000 teachers, cafeteria workers, janitors and other school employees and their families.
For those on the most expensive and popular option, the monthly premium for family coverage under the plan will increase to about $1,528 from $1,029.96 this year. The maximum premium for individuals will increase to about $336 a month from $226.70.
In other remarks, the governor said lawmakers who voted against the private option expansion of health care to the poor, passed in the last legislative session, either “didn’t listen or ideology took over.”
“Many were doing what their constituents wanted them to do, oppose Obamacare, but that’s a fight they’ll have to make in Washington, D.C.,” Beebe said.
At least two of the 22 House members who voted against the private option were in the audience. Rep. Jim Dotson, R-Bentonville, said, “We’ll let the voters decide” if taxpayer money continues to flow to the private option. The appropriation requires legislative approval every year.
Rep. Justin Harris, R-West Fork, said he “knew what I was walking in to,” when he went to the governor’s speech. The spending in health care reform isn't sustainable, he said. “My constituents are proud and happy with how I voted,” he said.