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Oklahoma's Health Care Crunch

Across Oklahoma, working families are getting squeezed by the health care system.

 

In 2006, 19 percent of Oklahomans had no health insurance, and the numbers keep growing. Health care costs are rising at more than twice the rate of inflation. Health care premiums have increased nationally by 78 percent since 2001, based on the Kaiser Family Foundation surveys and wages have increased 19 percent. As a result, employers, including the State of Oklahoma are looking for ways to shift the cost to employees.

 

Because of this shift, Oklahoma’s state employees are in danger of loosing some of their health insurance benefits.

 

OPEA remembers when state employees struggled to pay high premiums, deductibles and co-payments—if they could afford such coverage at all.  And we are willing to fight to keep our benefits package. 

 

We want to know how you feel about this?

 

Posted on Monday, November 5, 2007 by Bud Elder filed under

5 comments (Add your own)

1. Jackie Switzer wrote:
At the moment, as a Corporal in the ODOC, I am making just enough money to survive.

Contrary to popular belief, many employees of the Dept of Corrections do not recieve overtime, we simply struggle to keep going.

The OPM website and job descriptions state that being a CSO III is the career level of the ODOC. What does that mean? It means that until I qualify for, and am selected for a management position, I will not recieve a raise in pay.

Should I lose the benefit of having paid insurance, I see no way to continue surviving if I have to allocate more of my already stretched income to cover my health expenses.

So the question really is..

Oklahoma, do you want to have a healthy workforce?

November 24, 2007 @ 7:32 PM

2. Roy G. Bridwell wrote:
November 1st was my one year anniversary with the ODOC. I am married with 2 teenage children. My wife works for the Forgan Oklahoma public school as a cook.
Part of what lead me to this job was the clseness to my home, also the idea of being able to give a little back to the people of the stae , and to possably make a difference in the world my children will have to live in. It was not to be able to get ahead due to the fact that on my current pay even with my wife working as well it is quite a challenge to get by some months. Some months one of, or both of us has had to find extra work to make ends meet. As you can imagine living in a small rural community this is not an easy task.
The benefits was one of the main things that made this the job of my choice when I was lookingfor something closer to home. The main benefit that made it look attractive even though the pay was going to keep us on a tight budget was the medical coverage. This is very important to myself as I would imagine it would be to anybody that has children to raise. As a cancer survivor I very well understand the importance of good insurance, due to the fact that in an unexpected situation medical bills can accumulate very rapidly.
If we loose the current medical benefit that I recieve as an employee of the great state of Oklahoma me and my family will most likely be forced to join the ranks of the uninsured that is already a major problem in our state, and needs to be improved on not increased upon.

November 26, 2007 @ 12:31 AM

3. Larry Meilleur wrote:
If the Immigation Bill 1804 saves $200 in state dollares. Then the state should live us a payraise. Sure up OPERS and give retirees a cola rais3 also. I blame Rep Randy Terrill for cuting taxes so that we are running short of revenue for all of thsi stuff.

December 24, 2007 @ 2:00 PM

4. Vick wrote:
I agree with Larry. The legislature gave the Corporates a big gift (why?) by reducing taxes. Now their action has caused a reduction in State revenues. This is despite record Oil and Gas prices, the main source of revenue for the State. Now, the legislature wants to imprive the State's revenue position by shafting State Employees.

February 23, 2008 @ 5:26 PM

5. jchapel wrote:
Suffering from an addiction. This website has a lot of great resources and treatment centers. http://www.treatmentcenters.org

June 1, 2008 @ 6:17 AM

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