Florida Health News

Florida legislators and 24,000 state managers get free insurance

By Christine Jordan Sexton
4/24/2008 © Florida Health News

TALLAHASSEE---While Florida lawmakers debate how to make health insurance more affordable for Floridians, it's not something they have to worry about for themselves or their own families.

Nearly all of the state’s 160 lawmakers have helped themselves to a perk of the job: Free health insurance. All but six have signed up for it, according to the Office of Legislative Services, which oversees spending. Nearly 80 percent also enrolled their spouses and children at no charge, records show.

The individual coverage for 31 legislators costs taxpayers $428 a month or about $5,000 a year apiece. For the 123 legislators who signed up for family coverage, the tab is $968 a month -- more than $11,600 a year apiece.

Total cost to taxpayers this year: nearly $1.5 million.

Florida’s health insurance perk for lawmakers, which includes free dental coverage, is as generous as any in the nation, according to a biennial analysis compiled by the National Council of State Legislatures. Only eight states pay 100 percent of legislators’ health insurance; the analysis doesn’t make clear whether any others cover the entire cost for families as well.

Lawmakers aren’t the only ones in Florida who receive free health insurance from the taxpayers. It’s also given to almost 24,000 state employees, mostly senior managers, political appointees, legislative staff and 195 employees in the Governor’s Office. Expanding access to health care is a stated priority for Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.

Most Florida state employees contribute to their health costs, at a rate of $50 a month for individuals and $180 a month for families, says Doug Martin, lobbyist for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
“The highest paid people get (free coverage), but the lady who dumps their trash at night has to pay to subsidize their health insurance,” said Martin.

The free-insurance policy for lawmakers and senior managers contrasts with the state’s high rate of uninsured, one of the worst in the country. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, Florida has about 3.8 million uninsured residents – about 24 percent of the under-65 population.

Most private-sector employees who get coverage through the workplace nowadays have to pay for it, usually through payroll deductions. Premiums for a family plan last year averaged more than $12,000, with the worker paying about one-fourth of that, Kaiser recently reported. Its analysis showed premiums for employer-sponsored coverage rose 78 percent since 2001.

State Sen. Jim King, R-Jacksonville, said he has taken advantage of the health care benefit for the 22 years he’s been a legislator. That doesn’t mean he is out of touch with Floridians who are uninsured or struggle to pay rising premiums, he said.

“You don’t have to be poor to appreciate what somebody with no money experiences every day,” said King. “I don’t think (free health insurance) makes us elitists.”

Rep. Bill Galvano, an attorney with the Bradenton-based law firm Grimes Goebel, said he dropped the firm’s health insurance plan after getting elected in 2002. The state-sponsored coverage is better, he said.

Sen. Mike Bennett, who was elected to the House in 2000 and the Senate in 2002, disagreed with the notion that his health insurance was free. “I work 30 hours a week (on legislative issues) year-round; believe me, I pay for it,” Bennett said. Officially the job of legislator is part-time, with lawmakers in regular session 60 days a year. They earn nearly $32,000 annually.

Long time social services advocate Karen Woodall said everyone should have health-care benefits as good as lawmakers’. But when anyone suggests expansion of health benefits to more Floridians, she said, legislators say no, that the state can’t afford any new entitlements. “They are using taxpayer money for their (own) health insurance,” said Woodall. “It works just fine for them.” Christine Jordan Sexton can be reached at cjordansexton@hotmail.com

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Florida legislators and 24,000 state managers get free insurance

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