Teacher health insurance premium contributions
Q. What is the basis for computing each teacher’s premium contribution amount for health
insurance coverage?
A. The amount teachers pay is based on their “base earnings.” This term means your annual salary
rate, but not extra pay for summer school, covering a class, lunch duty, coaching, etc.
The higher your annual salary, the higher your premium contribution.
Q. Do you pay less if you’re in the HMO?
A. No. Whether you are in the PPO or the HMO, your premium contribution is the same amount.
Q. Should you switch from the PPO to the HMO because of the premium contribution
deductions?
A. No! The PPO plan remains a better plan with freedom to choose doctors, hospital and other
medical providers. The PPO also continues to provide more comprehensive coverage and better
benefits overall.
Q. Do you pay more if you have family coverage?
A. Yes. You pay 2% of your base salary for family coverage and 1% for single coverage.
Q. Does family coverage apply to a couple without dependent children?
A. Yes.
Q. How does MPS calculate the amount of your premium contribution?
A. MPS multiplies your annual base salary by 2% (family) or by 1% (single) to determine the total
amount of your premium contributions for the school year.
Q. What is the range of amounts teachers will pay in the 2011-12 school year?
A. With family coverage (2%), the following are the premium amounts for teachers at the base,
middle, and top of the 191-day salary schedule for 2011-12.
Annual Premium Premium Deduction on
Annual Salary Contribution 20 Biweekly Paychecks
$36,622 (Base) $732.44 $36.62
$53, 904 (Middle) $1,070.08 $53.90
$74, 736 (Top) $1,494.72 $74.74
Q. What is the range for single coverage?
A. For single coverage (1% of base salary), divide the 2% amounts in half.
Q. For teachers with family coverage, the 2% premium contributions almost offsets the 2.5%
raise for 2011-12. Was anything bargained to soften the impact on take-home pay?
A. Yes. An agreement was reached to make premium contribution deductions on a pre-tax basis.
There will be no deductions for federal and state income taxes, and Social Security/Medicare
contributions.
This results in more take-home pay than treating premium contributions as taxable income.
Q. When are premium contributions deducted?
A. For teachers on the traditional and IB calendars, there are 20 biweekly paycheck deductions each
school year. The first deduction is on September 16.
Q. Do teachers at year-round schools have 20 deductions for their health insurance premium
contributions?
A. No. Their premium deductions are spread over 24 of the 26 biweekly paychecks they receive
annually.
(No premium deductions are made when there is a third check in a month. For 2011-12, the two
paychecks without a deduction for year-round teachers will be September 30, 2011 and March 30,
2012.)
Q. How are the year-round deductions calculated?
A. The annual premium contribution amounts are determined just like other teachers: multiply 1%
(single) or 2% (family) times your “base earnings” - your annual salary.
However, the annual premium amount is divided by 24 (instead of 20). For example, a teacher
with a $53,904 annual salary pays $44.92 on 24 paychecks for family coverage. The same
teacher, if on the traditional or IB calendar, would pay $53.90 on 20 paychecks.