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Health benefits for local officials vary
Some township supervisors refuse to claim health insurance benefits because of the added cost to tax payers.
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Article RatingLike many local officials, South Middleton Township Supervisor Tom Faley is eligible to receive health insurance benefits from the township. But he chooses not to.
“I am uncomfortable claiming it, because it would cost the township over $10,000 a year,” Faley said.
Dickinson Township Supervisor Allyn Perkins agrees. He also chooses not to take advantage of his township’s health insurance plan.
“The decision to not take advantage of Dickinson Township’s health insurance plan is a continuation of my commitment to public service without seeking personal financial benefit,” Perkins said. “It gives me great pleasure to pass this significant savings on to the residents of Dickinson Township.”
As a dentist in private practice, Perkins said his decision to save taxpayers money comes at a personal cost.
“My primary health insurance coverage is through my dental practice group plan,” he explained. “This is an expensive benefit to provide, and I could save a substantial amount of money if covered under the township’s plan.”
Under the Second Class Township Code, state law allows township officials to receive health benefits paid for by taxpayers. Supervisors are eligible for township-paid insurance plans including group life, health, hospitalization, medical service and accident, paid in whole or in part by the township.
“It’s been in the code for years,” said Elam Herr of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors. “Probably when it was put in, the cost of insurance was not what it is today.”
Herr said the boards of supervisors have the power to decide whether they are going to make the benefits available to themselves or not.
“It’s a local decision,” he said.
Four out of five South Middleton supervisors take advantage of the benefit for their part-time jobs.
South Middleton spends more than $42,000 annually on benefits for the four supervisors in addition to their annual salaries of $3,250 each.
The supervisors pay 1 percent – or $32.50 a year – of their salaries toward health insurance.
But not all municipalities offer benefits, and of those that do, not all officials subscribe.
“There are those that do not take it for any reason,” Herr said.
Faley said that as retired military, most of his health expenses are covered under his private insurance. Those that are not, he pays out of pocket.
“I estimate I’ve saved the township over $100,000 during my 13 years of supervisor service,” Faley said.
Number varies
The number of local part-time elected officials who have health benefits varies, as does the cost of benefits.
None of North Middleton Township’s five supervisors has health insurance, according to Township Manager Deborah Ealer.
In Dickinson Township, only Supervisor Dan Wyrick accepts health care insurance for himself and his family, at a cost to the township of $13,481 annually. Wyrick, like other township employees, does not contribute to the cost of his benefits.
In Silver Spring Township, only Supervisor Jackie Eakin receives benefits. Eakin is on the township’s policy as an individual at the cost of $5,484 annually to the township. Like township employees, Eakin does not contribute to the cost of her benefits.
All three North Newton Township supervisors subscribe to health insurance through the township. Supervisors David Parthemore and Harold Hamilton receive coverage for themselves at the cost of $6,323 each, while Supervisor Glenn Glesner receives coverage for his family at $10,416, according to township officials. None of the North Newton supervisors pays anything toward benefit costs.
Other municipalities, like West Pennsboro Township, offer limited coverage to supervisors.
“They have no full-blown coverage,” explained West Pennsboro township secretary Evelyn Swartz. And the cost of that coverage is “minimal,” she said.
Cost varies
The cost of benefits also varies by municipality.
“There’s a lot of different things that go into it,” said Robert Kole of Benefit Connections, a Carlisle-based independent insurance company that provides insurance to several area municipalities.
“The health insurance rate is based on age, gender and industry,” Kole said. “The mix of the (board) will dictate their rate.”
Kole said family coverage is more expensive than individual coverage or husband/wife coverage, and when a majority of the board is eligible for Medicare coverage, that affects the cost as well.
Ultimately, the cost of health care for officials comes out of taxpayers’ pocketbooks.
“It certainly is understandable, given the deplorable state of America’s health care system, for anyone to seek health care benefits wherever they can find them,” said Tim Potts, of Democracy Rising PA, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working for integrity, value, transparency and citizen confidence in government.
“But being understandable isn’t the same as being appropriate.” he added. “For a part-time job to yield full-time benefits, not just for the employee but for the employee’s family as well, seems a bit excessive.”
Potts is a Carlisle school board member. State law prohibits compensation or benefits for school board members.
“Being on the Carlisle school board without compensation or benefits gives me, I suppose, a perspective from both the public official side and the taxpayer side,” he said. “You will remember that this was the pivot point of our contract with school employees just a few years ago. Our staff now pay double-digit percentages of their salary for their health care benefits. And in the private sector, it’s more like 25 percent – if you get health insurance through your employer at all.”
Potts said it should be up to taxpayers to decide on whether their officials receive benefits.
“The only remedy for aggrieved citizens is to express their displeasure is at a regularly scheduled election,” he said.
