Stafford teachers, school employees plan to protest health insurance changes

By KELLY HANNON

Date published: 12/20/2003

Stafford plan irks teachers

In a rare political display, Stafford County teachers and school employees are rallying to protest the loss of free health insurance.

At stake is a benefit teachers and staff have enjoyed for at least 30 years.

Organized protests are scheduled for Stafford County School Board meetings in January. Teachers have formed a grass-roots committee, Save Our Benefits, to alert employees who haven't been following the issue. The Stafford Education Association held emergency meetings at schools this week to coordinate its own opposition efforts.

"It's surprising to me how much ire it's raised in the sense of fairness," said Mary Bland, a math teacher at Colonial Forge High School. "I would have easily thought people would've sat back and said, 'Oh well.'"

Currently, the school district pays 100 percent of the health-care premium for individual school employees.

Employees with spouse, child or family coverage are not so lucky.

This year, employees with family coverage are forking over $626 a month. Employees with spouse coverage are paying $409.

To offset the hefty premiums for this group, a committee of school employees suggested to the School Board that individual workers start to make a premium contribution next year.

According to district estimates, individual teachers would pay $40 a month, or $480 a year, to keep their current plan. Several less expensive plans with fewer benefits would be introduced.

Charles Woodruff, director of finance for Stafford County public schools, said he understands why teachers are upset over losing a benefit. But allowing free insurance to continue has led to a grossly out-of-balance system, he said.

"When any group of people pay nothing, things get out of balance," Woodruff said. "Nobody gets free insurance. You don't get free car insurance, you don't get free life insurance, you don't get free homeowner's insurance.

"The whole concept of insurance is to protect yourself against some calamity that you couldn't otherwise afford," he continued. "So you want to get as many people in the insurance pool as possible."

Still, the possibility of losing free insurance has rankled workers. Raises are never a guarantee, and they fear that any raise they receive will be outpaced by the premium increase. Also, some resent being asked to foot the bill for the minority of people who have more than single coverage.

Date published: 12/20/2003