Health insurance premiums set for state of Oklahoma employees

Health insurance premiums for some state and local government employees will increase 7 to 8 percent under 2017 rates approved this week by the Office of Management and Enterprise Services.

The rate hike is for HealthChoice plans offered to current employees and pre-Medicare retirees. Premiums for HealthChoice Medicare supplement plans will jump by 16 percent.

Other 2017 HealthChoice rates include an 11.3 percent decrease for HealthChoice Focus for pre-Medicare former employees and their covered dependents. Rates increased for the HealthChoice High Deductible Health Plan by 6.5 percent and for the HealthChoice Dental plan by 6.7 percent. HealthChoice Life and HealthChoice Disability Plan premiums remained the same.

“We worked very hard to provide the best options for coverage at the lowest possible rates,” Lucinda Meltabarger, OMES human capital management administrator, said in a statement. “This year has been a challenging one for state budgets and the national insurance market.”

Read more: http://newsok.com/health-insurance-premiums-set-for-state-of-oklahoma-employees/article/5513548