The actual health care claims for FY17 were much lower than projected, therefore the employee deduction will be reduced. This will be accomplished by reducing the total amount of the employee contribution for FY18 (the plan year “goal” amount) by $475 per enrolled employee. This means you might have some paychecks in the remaining months of the plan year with no employee health care deduction.

When will you see this reduction?
It depends on what plan you are on and when you started on the plan. For example, 12-month employees on the CHDP since July will see a reduced deduction in their paycheck on March 2, 2018, and no employee deductions after that. Less-than-12-month employees who have been on contract since the summer will see the reduction sooner. Employees on the 750 Plan will see the reduction later.

Please note that deductions for dependent charges and credits for the wellness rebate will continue as scheduled; this change does not affect those items.

Why don’t we just reduce the biweekly deduction for health care?
The goal of the JHCC is to manage the plan to keep the deductions steady from year to year as much as possible. This practice allows employees and their families to plan and make informed decisions. Health care inflation is still here, high-dollar claims are still happening and we do expect an increase in overall health care costs over time. It’s better to keep rates steady than to risk a roller-coaster pattern of lower and higher rates year over year.

For more information about benefits, visit www.alaska.edu/benefits/.