The Florida House wants to revamp state employee health insurance. State employees would pay more for plans with greater benefits, and less for fewer benefits.
The House proposal also sort health plans into tiers—like bronze, silver, gold and platinum. Republican bill sponsor Rep. Jason Brodeur, R-Sanford told Rep. Alan Williams, D-Tallahassee, that North Florida’s Capital Regional Health plan would see a drop in premiums under the bill.
"CHP individuals will see their premiums go down $10 and families will see their premiums go down $10. So really what this right pricing does is recognize both the volume and quality of Capital Health plan’s investment and their premiums will actually go down for everyone that uses them," Brodeur said.
Right now state employees pay the same for HMO plans as they do for PPO plans with fewer benefits.
“The premiums for PPOs will go down and the premiums for HMOs will go slightly up for individuals and families. However the net, whether you’re an individual or a family, is either the same premium or less," Brodeur said.
The House plan would also establish a pilot project for medical billing transparency, and employees who choose to shop around for healthcare, would get a portion of the savings back.
Democrats and Unions who are concerned state employees may see price increases in their health plans. The measure is part of a package of cost-related bills the House has put forth. The state employee health insurance program is run by the Florida Department of Management Services.
