More Texas teachers are facing a massive financial hit from the rising price of healthcare. Pasadena ISD’s healthcare benefits program has been running at a deficit for several years, according to the school district. So district leaders decided they were going to have to ask Teachers to pay more to cover the expense. When teachers found out what that meant for their paychecks, they were shocked.
“When I heard we were moving insurance, I was interested,” Wheat said. “When I saw the numbers, I was devastated.”
Under the current plan, Wheat said she pays $628 a month to insure her family of five. Under the new plan, she will pay more than $2,200 a month, or another $19,968 a year.
“I’m the breadwinner in my household,” Wheat said. “We barely get by anyways. Everybody’s struggling, but to take away $20,000 of my income just for the right to go see a doctor, I literally cannot afford that.”
Pasadena ISD is not alone in struggling with out of control healthcare prices negatively impacting its employees.
A recent study conducted by The School Superintendents Association (AASA) and the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO International) found that 98% of district leaders report that rising healthcare prices are having a measurable impact on their budgets.
These budget impacts are making it hard for schools and districts to remain competitive in recruiting and retaining a high-quality workforce. If not resolved, the problem will quickly become a “crisis,” if it isn’t already, say report authors Sasha Pudelski, director of advocacy at AASA, and Elleko Yost, director of advocacy and research at ASBO International.
Texas lawmakers will have an opportunity to better protect Texas schools, and their employees, from the financial burden of skyrocketing healthcare prices when they convene for the next Texas Legislature in January by utilizing data from the Texas All-Payor Claims Database to optimize its contracts and payment structures.
TRS-ActiveCare, the Texas Teacher Retirement System’s health benefits program, has statewide reach and a $369 million budget. As such, it is a massive healthcare purchaser. By adopting reforms that work for teachers and state employees, private employers can adopt them with confidence, saving more Texas employers, and workers, more money.