New Jersey's School Employees' Health Benefits Commission voted 4-2 Friday to raise premiums 34.4%, a move likely to keep the employee plan open. A 2020 law puts most of the increase on districts, not workers; critics warn districts may cut jobs or raise property taxes.
The plan covers roughly 220 employers and 44,000 active members. In a Sept. 18 memo, the state warned it would no longer be available to active employees beginning Jan. 1 without rate approval; because the program is self-funded, premiums are its only revenue for active members' claims. Friday's vote followed two prior 4-4 ties. Two of eight commissioners did not vote: NJEA representative Sarah Favinger, whose term had expired and who had not been sworn in again for reappointment, according to union officials, and an absent commissioner. The plan's COO called the increase necessary and overdue.
Active enrollment fell 11.1% in fiscal 2025 as districts left for cheaper coverage, according to the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials. State officials blamed some plan problems on Chapter 44, a 2020 law limiting plan-design changes as health and prescription costs rose. State Sen. Vin Gopal's bill would create a statewide trust to take over coverage for participating districts in 2028; supporters say pooling employees could strengthen bargaining power and ease pressure on remaining districts. It would bar districts from leaving and require two months of reserves, but neither chamber's version had a hearing scheduled.
