CT State Reform

V-BID in Connecticut: More than 95% of State Employees Enrolled

In Connecticut, on May 17, Governor Malloy and unions representing state employees negotiated a labor agreement that includes targeted health savings driven by value-based insurance design.  The agreement was approved by union members on August 18 and ratified by the Connecticut legislature on September 1. State employees had until September 15 to decide whether or not they would participate in the V-BID program, and, according to Connecticut Comptroller Kevin Lembo, more than 95 percent of employees have chosen to enroll in the V-BID plan. This page provides further detail on the agreement—one of the first V-BID proposals for state employees.

Employees who choose to participate in the V-BID program will have a reprieve from higher premiums and deductibles if they commit to yearly physicals, age-appropriate diagnostic tests, and two free dental cleanings. Employees must also agree to participate in disease management programs, which include free office visits and lower co-pays for pharmaceuticals (including zero co-pays for generics) if they have one of five common chronic conditions. Some of the projected cost savings will come from new co-pays on ER visits and pre-authorization requirements for high-cost diagnostics.

In part, the agreement stated, “The simplistic answer—raising employee premium shares, co-pays, and instituting deductibles doesn’t work. In the short term, it saves employer costs by increasing employee costs. In the long term, it discourages employees from getting needed medical care, creating more avoidable illness and greater costs for everyone. The answer was to save money by keeping employees healthier…” Full details of the plan are available below.

> Read the full text of the agreement

> Read more about ratification

Media:

> Hartford Courant, September 2011
> West Hartford News
> The CT Mirror
> The Middletown Press
> The CT Mirror
> National Physicians Alliance
> Hartford Courant, June 24