By CHRIS DUGOVICH

Chris Dugovich
Council 2 President/Executive Director

Health insurance and the ability to pay the premiums have reached a crisis level for our membership across the state. Double-digit premium increases during the last four years have caused individuals in some instances to make unthinkable decisions.

Collective bargaining teams across the state have been consistently confronted with cutting benefits, raising deductibles and increasing co-payments just to keep increases from going beyond the teens to the 20s and 30s.

Dependent care is going by the wayside. Where it is a benefit it is increasingly difficult to maintain. Any attempt to gain family coverage in jurisdictions where it has not been provided before is “mission impossible.” No doubt in some jurisdictions, due to large payroll deductions, our membership is choosing not to cover family members. They are pinning their hopes on a “healthy year.”

In fewer than three years a Snohomish County family has gone from not paying any of its premium payment to paying an average of more than $190 a month. In Spokane County right now County management’s objective in contract negotiations is to reduce increased costs by cutting the health insurance plan and changing it to a much less desirable plan.

The crisis is real—it’s affecting every one of our members and even the traditionally best-funded jurisdictions are having difficulty getting a handle on the spiraling costs.

A national solution is needed now. Members of the current administration in Washington D.C. have offered no solutions and virtually sit on their hands as more and more individuals lose their insurance or settle for much less. It’s only going to get worse.

All of us need to be aware that—unless Kerry and Edwards have the opportunity to propose and push some real health insurance legislation — many of us four years from now may be paying for our family’s health needs directly out of our take-home pay. We will join the additional 2 million Americans who lost their health insurance during the last four years.

If these circumstances continue we will all need a lot of healthy years.