Scott again asks some workers to pay more for health insurance

Rick Scott's plan to run state government like a business meant layoffs and mandatory pension contributions for state employees in 2011.

In his 2012-13 budget recommendations, revealed Dec. 8, 2011, Scott identified another private sector trend he wants state employees to follow: paying more for their health insurance coverage.

"It's the only way to control it," he said of rising health care costs in a Dec. 21, 2011, interview with a Tallahassee radio station. "Typical of the state, they haven't had to do that very much, almost none."

Scott's 2012-13 budget includes a proposed savings of $46 million by increasing premiums for a sliver of state employees who pay less for premiums than rank-and-file employees. His recommendation would affect about 24,500 higher-ranking state officials, legislators and their aides, and bring their premiums in line with typically lower-paid employees. Individual premiums would increase from $8.34 to $50 a month, and family coverage -- which Scott pays for -- would go up from $30 a month to $180, according to the Department of Management Services.

For family coverage, that's an increase of $1,800 a year. It's not much to Scott, a multimillionaire, but for legislative aides and some lawmakers it's a big jump. And it takes two to tango. Scott needs the Legislature to approve his plan during its 2012 session, which starts Jan. 10. Lawmakers didn't take him up on the idea in 2011, but they did approve a plan to make all employees contribute 3 percent of their salaries to general revenue as a pension contribution (which is tied up in the courts, as of Jan. 3, 2011).

Scott promised to bring Florida's health insurance costs in line with the national average. In 2011, the national average of premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance was $5,429 for single coverage and $15,073 for family coverage, according to the annual survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research & Educational Trust. Employees contributed $921, or about $76 a month, for individual coverage and $4,129, or $344 a month, for family coverage.

Scott's 2012-13 budget inches closer to his goal of bringing health insurance costs in line with the national average. We rated this promise In the Works in February 2011, when Scott delivered his first budget recommendations. Scott is again pursuing reduced health insurance costs, though it remains to be seen if the Legislature will give it to him (and increase premiums for themselves and their staffers). So this promise stays In the Works.