Sunday, May 4, 2008

Gold-Plated Benefits for State Employees

By John LaPlante

Categories: Maine

"The rich," wrote F. Scott Fitzgerald, "are different from you and me." So too are state government employees.

The average large company in Maine spends $3,929 annually for each employee's health insurance. The State of Maine pays much nearly double that amount, or $7,445, for each one of its employees.

State employees have it good in another way, with no coinsurance and only a $200 deductible. Employees at the largest companies, by contrast, have a $400 deductible and a coinsurance of 25%.

If the benefit package of state employees matched that of private sector employees--even those of the most generous companies--state taxpayers would save over $30 million.

As the Legislature considers making cuts that would affect the elderly and poor, it's unreasonable for state employees to have benefits that are 93% above those of the private sector.

You can find a more thorough accounting at $217 Million in Reasonable Spending Cuts to Close the Budget Gap (PDF).