The School Employees’ Health Benefits Commission (SEHBC) today approved a more than 34 percent health insurance rate increase for participating school districts. Despite repeated requests for information and proposals to reduce costs, the division continued to insist on approval of the proposed rates without taking meaningful action to bring them down. All NJEA-appointed commissioners again voted against the increase. After months of pressing the Division of Pensions and Benefits to work with the commission to identify savings and reduce the impact on school districts, school employees and taxpayers, they refused to support the unchanged rate proposal.
Following the meeting, NJEA President Steve Beatty, Vice President Petal Robertson and Secretary-Treasurer Tina Dare released the following statement:
“Throughout this process, NJEA’s representatives on the commission have had one goal: to reduce these rates and save money for school districts, school employees and taxpayers. A 34 percent increase is simply unacceptable, and our commissioners were right to insist that every reasonable opportunity for savings be explored before asking districts and employees to absorb an increase of this magnitude.
“For months, our representatives have asked the Division of Pensions and Benefits to work with us to find those savings. They have requested information, proposed specific steps to reduce the rates and sought greater transparency about the factors driving these increases. Unfortunately, the division has refused to meaningfully engage in that effort. Today, our three commissioners again voted no because they could not support imposing these rates without first doing everything possible to reduce them.
“For school districts, increases of this magnitude also threaten the resources available for students. They should not lose out because health care costs are out of control. When districts are forced to spend significantly more on health care, that leaves less money for the programs, staff and services our students rely on every day.
“Now those rates have been approved, and districts and employees will face the consequences in 2027. That is deeply disappointing, but it does not change the work that needs to be done. Health care costs are rising at an unsustainable rate, and simply passing those increases along to school districts, school employees and taxpayers year after year is not a solution.
“That is why the Legislature must pass S4438/A5285, the Public School Employees’ Health Benefits Trust Act. The experience of the last several months has made clear why we need a new approach to public school employee health benefits, one that provides greater transparency and accountability and is focused on controlling costs while protecting high-quality benefits.
“We cannot wait for another rate crisis to address a problem we already know exists. Legislators need to act now to pass S4438/A5285 and put a more sustainable system in place.
“NJEA will continue to fight for immediate savings wherever they can be found and for the long-term changes needed to bring health care costs under control. Our members, our school districts, our students and New Jersey taxpayers cannot afford increases like this one.”