Jefferson City, MO – Union leaders in Missouri are not happy with a new health insurance plan for state employees. It replaces the current co-pay system with one that requires state workers to pay deductibles. Richard von Glahn is with the Missouri State Workers Union.
"We are frustrated because state employees are gonna be faced with higher out-of-pocket health care costs the Missouri legislature continues to choose policies that balance our revenue crisis on the backs of state workers," says von Glahn.
But Rick Bowles, who heads Missouri Consolidated Health Care, says sticking with the current system would have meant drastic cuts in benefits and higher co-pays, due to the drop in state revenues. The changes won't affect all state workers - employees of MoDOT and the University of Missouri System have separate health care plans.