Bill Text: OH HB146 | 2009-2010 | 128th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: To allow counties to participate in a state employee health insurance plan sponsored by the Department of Administrative Services.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-04-23 - To Insurance [HB146 Detail]
Download: Ohio-2009-HB146-Introduced.html
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Representative Hagan
Cosponsors:
Representatives Harris, Harwood, Yuko, Letson, Murray, Boyd, Foley, Chandler, Skindell
To amend sections 124.82 and 305.171 of the Revised | 1 |
Code to allow counties to participate in a state | 2 |
employee health insurance plan sponsored by the | 3 |
Department of Administrative Services. | 4 |
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 124.82 and 305.171 of the Revised | 5 |
Code be amended to read as follows: | 6 |
Sec. 124.82. (A) Except as provided in division (D) of this | 7 |
section, the department of administrative services, in | 8 |
consultation with the superintendent of insurance, shall, in | 9 |
accordance with competitive selection procedures of Chapter 125. | 10 |
of the Revised Code, contract with an insurance company or a | 11 |
health plan in combination with an insurance company, authorized | 12 |
to do business in this state, for the issuance of a policy or | 13 |
contract of health, medical, hospital, dental, or surgical | 14 |
benefits, or any combination of those benefits, covering state | 15 |
employees who are paid directly by warrant of the director of | 16 |
budget and management, including elected state officials, and | 17 |
county officers and employees that participate in the policy or | 18 |
contract under section 305.171 of the Revised Code. The | 19 |
department may fulfill its obligation under this division by | 20 |
exercising its authority under division (A)(2) of section 124.81 | 21 |
of the Revised Code. | 22 |
(B) The department may, in addition, in consultation with the | 23 |
superintendent of insurance, negotiate and contract with health | 24 |
insuring corporations holding a certificate of authority under | 25 |
Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code, in their approved service areas | 26 |
only, for issuance of a contract or contracts of health care | 27 |
services, covering state employees who are paid directly by | 28 |
warrant of the director of budget and management, including | 29 |
elected state officials, and county officers and employees that | 30 |
participate in the policy or contract under section 305.171 of the | 31 |
Revised Code. The department may enter into contracts with one or | 32 |
more insurance carriers or health plans to provide the same plan | 33 |
of benefits, provided that: | 34 |
(1) The amount of the premium or cost for such coverage | 35 |
contributed by the state, for an individual or for an individual | 36 |
and the individual's family, does not exceed that same amount of | 37 |
the premium or cost contributed by the state under division (A) of | 38 |
this section; | 39 |
(2) The employee be permitted to exercise the option as to | 40 |
which plan the employee will select under division (A) or (B) of | 41 |
this section, at a time that shall be determined by the | 42 |
department; | 43 |
(3) The health insuring corporations do not refuse to accept | 44 |
the employee, or the employee and the employee's family, if the | 45 |
employee exercises the option to select care provided by the | 46 |
corporations; | 47 |
(4) The employee may choose participation in only one of the | 48 |
plans sponsored by the department; | 49 |
(5) The director of health examines and certifies to the | 50 |
department that the quality and adequacy of care rendered by the | 51 |
health insuring corporations meet at least the standards of care | 52 |
provided by hospitals and physicians in that employee's community, | 53 |
who would be providing such care as would be covered by a contract | 54 |
awarded under division (A) of this section. | 55 |
(C) All or any portion of the cost, premium, or charge for | 56 |
the coverage in divisions (A) and (B) of this section may be paid | 57 |
in such manner or combination of manners as the department | 58 |
determines and may include the proration of health care costs, | 59 |
premiums, or charges for part-time employees. | 60 |
(D) Notwithstanding division (A) of this section, the | 61 |
department may provide benefits equivalent to those that may be | 62 |
paid under a policy or contract issued by an insurance company or | 63 |
a health plan pursuant to division (A) of this section. | 64 |
(E) This section does not prohibit the state office of | 65 |
collective bargaining from entering into an agreement with an | 66 |
employee representative for the purposes of providing fringe | 67 |
benefits, including, but not limited to, hospitalization, surgical | 68 |
care, major medical care, disability, dental care, vision care, | 69 |
medical care, hearing aids, prescription drugs, group life | 70 |
insurance, sickness and accident insurance, group legal services | 71 |
or other benefits, or any combination of those benefits, to | 72 |
employees paid directly by warrant of the director of budget and | 73 |
management through a jointly administered trust fund. The | 74 |
employer's contribution for the cost of the benefit care shall be | 75 |
mutually agreed to in the collectively bargained agreement. The | 76 |
amount, type, and structure of fringe benefits provided under this | 77 |
division is subject to the determination of the board of trustees | 78 |
of the jointly administered trust fund. Notwithstanding any other | 79 |
provision of the Revised Code, competitive bidding does not apply | 80 |
to the purchase of fringe benefits for employees under this | 81 |
division when those benefits are provided through a jointly | 82 |
administered trust fund. | 83 |
(F) Members of state boards or commissions may be covered by | 84 |
any policy, contract, or plan of benefits or services described in | 85 |
division (A) or (B) of this section. Board or commission members | 86 |
who are appointed for a fixed term and who are compensated on a | 87 |
per meeting basis, or paid only for expenses, or receive a | 88 |
combination of per diem payments and expenses shall pay the entire | 89 |
amount of the premiums, costs, or charges for that coverage. | 90 |
(G) The director of administrative services shall adopt by | 91 |
rule procedures for county officers and employees' participation | 92 |
in the state policy or contract selected by the department | 93 |
pursuant to this section, including method of application, payment | 94 |
of benefits, and transfer of money. | 95 |
Sec. 305.171. (A) The board of county commissioners of any | 96 |
county may contract for, purchase, or otherwise procure and pay | 97 |
all or any part of the cost of group insurance policies that may | 98 |
provide benefits including, but not limited to, hospitalization, | 99 |
surgical care, major medical care, disability, dental care, eye | 100 |
care, medical care, hearing aids, or prescription drugs, and that | 101 |
may provide sickness and accident insurance, group legal services, | 102 |
or group life insurance, or a combination of any of the foregoing | 103 |
types of insurance or coverage, for county officers and employees | 104 |
and their immediate dependents from the funds or budgets from | 105 |
which the county officers or employees are compensated for | 106 |
services, issued by an insurance company. | 107 |
(B) The board of county commissioners also may negotiate and | 108 |
contract for any plan or plans of health care services with health | 109 |
insuring corporations holding a certificate of authority under | 110 |
Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code, provided that each county | 111 |
officer or employee shall be permitted to do both of the | 112 |
following: | 113 |
(1) Exercise an option between a plan offered by an insurance | 114 |
company and a plan or plans offered by health insuring | 115 |
corporations under this division, on the condition that the county | 116 |
officer or employee shall pay any amount by which the cost of the | 117 |
plan chosen by the county officer or employee pursuant to this | 118 |
division exceeds the cost of the plan offered under division (A) | 119 |
of this section; | 120 |
(2) Change from one of the plans to another at a time each | 121 |
year as determined by the board. | 122 |
(C) Section 307.86 of the Revised Code does not apply to the | 123 |
purchase of benefits for county officers or employees under | 124 |
divisions (A) and (B) of this section when those benefits are | 125 |
provided through a jointly administered health and welfare trust | 126 |
fund in which the county or contracting authority and a collective | 127 |
bargaining representative of the county employees or contracting | 128 |
authority agree to participate. | 129 |
(D) The board of trustees of a jointly administered trust | 130 |
fund that receives contributions pursuant to collective bargaining | 131 |
agreements entered into between the board of county commissioners | 132 |
of any county and a collective bargaining representative of the | 133 |
employees of the county may provide for self-insurance of all risk | 134 |
in the provision of fringe benefits, and may provide through the | 135 |
self-insurance method specific fringe benefits as authorized by | 136 |
the rules of the board of trustees of the jointly administered | 137 |
trust fund. The fringe benefits may include, but are not limited | 138 |
to, hospitalization, surgical care, major medical care, | 139 |
disability, dental care, vision care, medical care, hearing aids, | 140 |
prescription drugs, group life insurance, sickness and accident | 141 |
insurance, group legal services, or a combination of any of the | 142 |
foregoing types of insurance or coverage, for county employees and | 143 |
their dependents. | 144 |
(E) The board of county commissioners may provide the | 145 |
benefits described in divisions (A) to (D) of this section through | 146 |
an individual self-insurance program or a joint self-insurance | 147 |
program as provided in section 9.833 of the Revised Code or | 148 |
through a plan sponsored by the department of administrative | 149 |
services under section 124.82 of the Revised Code. | 150 |
(F) When a board of county commissioners offers health | 151 |
benefits authorized under this section to a county officer or | 152 |
employee, the board may offer the benefits through a cafeteria | 153 |
plan meeting the requirements of section 125 of the "Internal | 154 |
Revenue Code of 1986," 100 Stat. 2085, 26 U.S.C.A. 125, as | 155 |
amended, and, as part of that plan, may offer the county officer | 156 |
or employee the option of receiving a cash payment in any form | 157 |
permissible under such cafeteria plans. A cash payment made to a | 158 |
county officer or employee under this division shall not exceed | 159 |
twenty-five per cent of the cost of premiums or payments that | 160 |
otherwise would be paid by the board for benefits for the county | 161 |
officer or employee under a policy or plan. | 162 |
(G) The board of county commissioners may establish a policy | 163 |
authorizing any county appointing authority to make a cash payment | 164 |
to any county officer or employee in lieu of providing a benefit | 165 |
authorized under this section if the county officer or employee | 166 |
elects to take the cash payment instead of the offered benefit. A | 167 |
cash payment made to a county officer or employee under this | 168 |
division shall not exceed twenty-five per cent of the cost of | 169 |
premiums or payments that otherwise would be paid by the board for | 170 |
benefits for the county officer or employee under an offered | 171 |
policy or plan. | 172 |
(H) No cash payment in lieu of a health benefit shall be made | 173 |
to a county officer or employee under division (F) or (G) of this | 174 |
section unless the county officer or employee signs a statement | 175 |
affirming that the county officer or employee is covered under | 176 |
another health insurance or health care policy, contract, or plan, | 177 |
and setting forth the name of the employer, if any, that sponsors | 178 |
the coverage, the name of the carrier that provides the coverage, | 179 |
and the identifying number of the policy, contract, or plan. | 180 |
(I) The legislative authority of a county-operated municipal | 181 |
court, after consultation with the judges, or the clerk and deputy | 182 |
clerks, of the municipal court, shall negotiate and contract for, | 183 |
purchase, or otherwise procure, and pay the costs, premiums, or | 184 |
charges for, group health care coverage for the judges, and group | 185 |
health care coverage for the clerk and deputy clerks, in | 186 |
accordance with section 1901.111 or 1901.312 of the Revised Code. | 187 |
(J) As used in this section: | 188 |
(1) "County officer or employee" includes, but is not limited | 189 |
to, a member or employee of the county board of elections. | 190 |
(2) "County-operated municipal court" and "legislative | 191 |
authority" have the same meanings as in section 1901.03 of the | 192 |
Revised Code. | 193 |
(3) "Health care coverage" has the same meaning as in section | 194 |
1901.111 of the Revised Code. | 195 |
Section 2. That existing sections 124.82 and 305.171 of the | 196 |
Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 197 |