By Tracy Ouellette
Editor
Although the East Troy Village Board approved Nov. 17 remaining United Healthcare Plan for the month of December to put the village back on a calendar-year renewal cycle, the process had begun to switch the village to a different health-insurance carrier, because of increasing costs.
The village’s Health Insurance Committee met throughout October and November looking over different plans and options available from several carriers to find the best deal for the village an its employees. The committee, which include insurance agent John Zinzow, Trustees Linda Kaplan and Ann Zess, Public Works Director Mike Miller and Police Chief Alan Boyes, was tasked with the job of finding a new plan and/or carrier that fit within the budget of $268,750 for 2015.
“It wasn’t an easy process,” Zess said. Finding a plan that employees can handle and the village can afford … it just wasn’t an easy process.”
The committee recommended the village contract for with Aetna for co-pay health-care plan with HRA (Health Reimbursement Account). The projected cost is about $10,000 under the budgeted amount for next year.
Employees will pay a 10 percent premium contribution and the recommendation from the committee stated some employees would see a premium increase and some a decrease.
It also stated the deductibles employees pay and out-of-pocket expenses are expected increase. However, with the co-pay plan each employee will have access to an HRA in the amount of $1,000 to help cover out-of-pocket expenses. Any employees with a remaining HRA balance at the end of 2015 will have that amount rolled over into 2016.
The village is not alone with its struggle to meet the needs of its employees and stay within budget with the rising costs of health insurance since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
“Looking at the plan, I think its fair,” Trustee Dusty Stanford said. “You have to balance the budget and the needs of the taxpayers and the employees. I think you did that here.”
Airport management
The board also approved the two-year East Troy Airport manager’s contract with Aviator Services LLC and manager Walter Watkins.
The contract pays Aviator Services $24,600 annually to provide for the general operations, maintenance and management of the airport.
The Airport Committee and Watkins have been working on modifying the contract for the two years to help eliminate some of the issues that have arose over the past 24 months.
Village Board President Randy Timms said many of the problems were addressed in the new contract and that communication between the village and the airport manager was a priority. Public Works Director Mike Miller has been put in charge of overseeing the airport management and Watkins will report to him quarterly to keep the village up to date on what’s going on at the airport.
