Over the course of the past 3 years, our health care costs have increased by around 11%. We, as employees NOT THE COUNTY,  have shouldered the vast majority of these increases through the introduction of co-pays, pharmacy co-pays, out of pocket maximums, and deductibles. 

These costs have essentially made the County a lot of money and led to a dramatic increase in the insurance plans savings account, referred to as the reserves. We have been fighting for the last two years to drastically reduce costs to members. We have not made the headway we need but have won some MODEST gains. In particular, everyone will be getting money next year (on an FS, healthcare card) to pay for healthcare expenses ($400 for single, $700 for family) and we will see a $5 decrease in office and urgent care co-pays.