DWTX from Anaheim - While the U. S. House of Representatives and Senate move toward sweeping healthcare legislation, the 76th General Convention will also be asked to consider a substantial change in the health care program for Episcopal Church clergy and lay employees. Resolution A177 asks General Convention to establish a Denominational Health Plan (DHP) for all “domestic dioceses, parishes, missions, and other ecclesiastical organizations”
The simple reason for the request is cost savings. The Church Pension Group (CPG), which is affiliated with the Church Medical Trust that now administers all Episcopal Church healthcare plans, estimates that in 2008, Episcopal Church dioceses, parishes, and official agencies spent about $133 million on healthcare benefits. “If steps are not taken to manage these costs,” says information from the CPG, “that number may increase to over $250 million by 2015.” A larger pool of insured persons means more leverage and a larger demographic in buying healthcare coverage.
In the Diocese of West Texas, projected savings on the diocesan budget are from $52,000 to $148,000, depending on a number of factors. “That is a savings of anywhere from 2.5 percent to 7 percent,” says West Texas Deputy Don Lee, who serves on the Church Pension Group committee to which the resolution has been assigned.
All dioceses and congregations of The Episcopal Church will be required to participate in the DHP; dioceses will determine whether other organizations under their umbrella will also take part in it. Currently participation in the Church Medical Trust system is optional.
Lee reports that at the first committee hearing on DHP, held Thursday morning, those giving testimony – including lay people, priests, and bishops – “were predominantly in favor of the plan.” Major concerns centered on the amount of autonomy dioceses will have in the implementation of the DHP.
For instance, one large diocese was concerned that some of the people it now insures would be left without coverage. The DHP says that all full-time employees (those who work at least 1,500 hours a year) must be covered; but that large diocese also covers part-time employees. CPG President Dennis Sullivan said, however, that dioceses would be free to cover part-time employees if they so choose.
Lee said that other witnesses at the hearing asked if the DHP is a monopoly. “It’s not,” said Lee. “The only interest of the CPG is to provide a reasonable and affordable healthcare plan.” He added that dioceses will have a great deal of autonomy in how they apply the plan in their location.
The most difficult challenge facing West Texas congregations is that the DHP calls for parity between clergy and laity. “If a church’s plan covers the clergyperson and his or her dependents, then that same coverage must also be offered to all lay employees of the church who work more than 1,500 hours a year,” explained Lee. Under the current policies of the diocese, all congregations must provide 100 percent paid coverage for their clergy and clergy dependents through the Church Medical Trust plan, but that requirement does not extended to all lay employees.