Fire Commentary: Fallout of Rising Health Insurance Premiums

Like many others in law enforcement, I just want the facts when trying to understand the effect of health insurance premium increases. So do those in other safety occupations such as the fire service and corrections. Not only must you get the facts, but you must also to learn options available to counter health insurance premium increases. Premium increases are a fact of life, but if you do nothing, you will pay them. Unfortunately, premium increases are just the beginning.

If public employees are not proactive, they are at the mercy of those who formulate the local budget to address these increases. In some municipalities, retirees' fixed retirement pension may be even more severely affected. These former employees are often most vulnerable if they are separated from the governmental bargaining unit and left to face health insurance premium increases alone, and may have little or no alternative for health care.

Health insurance premium increases affect the municipal budget, and employees will be the first asked to make up the difference. If we are not prepared, we can blame only ourselves and will pay in more ways than just with our pocketbook.

Unless employee collective bargaining units and municipal negotiation teams come to terms during tough negotiation times, there can be a number of other potential consequences, whether a budget deficit is real or imagined. Budget shortfalls can result in fewer employees, reduced temporary help, cuts in overtime, reduced training, longer response times, and limited new capital improvements.