If you work for the city of Lexington and get health insurance through the city, its going to cost you more beginning next year.
In some cases, a lot more.
"What we saw yesterday was pretty much an insult delivered by the administration of the City," says Lt. Chris Bartley, President of the Lexington Professional Firefighters.
Bartley says he spent Tuesday night trying to figure out if he can afford the health coverage plan the city just released.
He says the entire fire department, as well as police and other city workers will be the ones hurting.
"We understand that there needs to be some increases made, but not to the point where they hurt us economically so bad," says Bartley.
The new plan is made up of 5 separate options, which cover office visits and in-patient and out-patient treatment.
But costs of these plans would increase.
Some very little, while others a lot more.
For example, a single employee could go from paying around $350 to more than $600 in one option.
Or a family could pay $1400 instead of the $700 they're used to.
But officials with Benefit Insurance Marketing (the firm that came up with the plan) say employees and their families will actually save money because of an on-site wellness center and on-site pharmacy they will have full access to.
"We're offering that service on all 5 plans at no cost to the employees where if they wanted to have those services before, they would have to pay a co-pay for that," says Benji Marrs, BIM's Senior Vice President.
Officials say city workers would still end up paying roughly the same, or less than many others in the state.
Bartley says the fire department has already suffered by having to give back some of the money in the collective bargaining agreement.
We took a health insurance hit of $100 less a month already. Now, they're doubling our rates in some cases. It feels like a little bit of betrayal has been done by the administration on this one," notes Bartley.
These changes are expected to take place starting January 1st of next year.
Employees will be educated on the new plans between now and then.
Bartley says there may be a major protest downtown next week for those opposed to the plans.
