Joint trusts could put an end to the 'blame game'

One of the best ways to stem rising health care costs is to get into a bigger

pool, advises Susan McClure, a health care consultant with the CTA Member Benefits Department.

"Spreading risk over a larger group of people tends to lower the cost of health care. The larger the group that's buying benefits the better. You have more leverage to get a better price if you have more people."

There are a couple of ways to enlarge the pool. One is with a Joint Powers Authority (JPA), in which school districts band together to provide insurance coverage that may include worker's compensation, general insurance and health insurance. However, because JPAs are controlled by management and tend to rely on brokers who may not always have their best interests at heart, teachers should proceed with caution before jumping aboard.

The other - and better - way, says McClure, is to join a Jointly Managed Trust (JMT). A JMT is a cooperative labor/management effort to provide high-quality benefits at reasonable costs. In addition to offering teachers a voice in decision-making, trusts have a tax-exempt status and an appeals process.

Trusts typically provide health care for teachers, administrators and classified employees in several districts. The governing board consists of both union and management trustees. Participation in the trust is controlled by collective bargaining agreements. It is easier to join an existing trust than to start one from scratch, which can be a costly and laborious process. There are presently 11 such trusts with 265 participating school districts, providing 365,000 individuals with medical coverage.

Joining a trust offers several advantages:

• Decisions on benefit plans are made together and benefits can be tailored to specific needs.
• It puts an end to the "blame game."
• Difficult issues can be removed from the bargaining table.
• The resources of labor and management can be combined in focusing on the problem.

"Being in a trust improved our rates, gave teachers a voice and brought health care to employees at the best rate," says Lois Shive, a trustee of the Southern California Voluntary Benefits Association, a 10-year-old trust that covers 85,000 employees and their dependents in the San Diego and Orange County areas.

"We're in extremely good financial shape," says Shive, who belongs to the Escondido Secondary Teachers Association. "We get quality at good cost. We have found there is power in numbers. It's a good way for school districts to go."

It has also worked well for Rohnert Park-Cotati Educators Association (RPCEA) members who belong to a single district trust - the Sonoma County Health and Welfare Benefits Fund.

"We have maintained the best benefits package of any school district in Sonoma County with our trust for 700 members who include teachers, classified employees, management and school board members," says trustee and RPCEA member Gail Whooley. "Another benefit is that when you are part of the decision-making process, you don't feel like you are having something 'done' to you. When we raised co-pays to lower the premium, it was something that we decided on together."

Still, getting into a trust can sometimes be easier said than done. Jim Hall, president of the El Monte Union Educators Association, says that his school district has been trying to join a trust for several years, but has been turned down because other school districts that applied had lower risk factors.

"We have quite a few older members, and trusts can be picky with so many groups of people applying to get in," he says. "Five years ago when we wanted to join a trust, we could have gotten right in, but the district's business manager didn't want to do it." If there are layoffs in his district, they are likely to happen to newer, younger teachers, which could raise the risk factor even more.

One option for local associations to consider is joining the California Public Employees Retirement System health program, which, unfortunately, had been a more attractive choice before it raised rates and reduced the plans available. Still, for some, it may be a better alternative than what they currently have.

While it has been suggested for years that CTA start its own health care plan, such an undertaking is not feasible, says President-elect Barbara E. Kerr. "Health care is just too big of a problem - and it's not a problem that CTA can solve on its own. It's a national problem and a national crisis."