ERIK SANZENBACH / L’Observateur / April 29, 2000

RESERVE – Responding to complaints by school employees about the high cost of prescription drugs, the St. John Parish School Board voted Thursday tosign an agreement with United Healthcare of Louisiana Inc., for healthbenefits.

The insurance committee has been researching insurance companies for the past several months. The present contract runs out on May 31. Mostemployees were very unhappy with the price of prescription drugs and had asked the board for a change.

“Prescription costs was the biggest sticking point,” said board member Dowie Gendron.

Under United Healthcare school board employees will be able to buy prescription medicine under a three-tier system. Generic drugs will have aco-payment of $8. Preferred, non-generic brands will cost $18, and non-preferred, non-generic brands will cost $28.

Employees will still have the $15 co-payment for doctor’s visits and a $25 co-payment for visits to specialists.

Under United Healthcare all members of the plan will have open access to specialists and other doctors. They would not have to get permission fromtheir primary care physician to see other doctors.

Also, doctors will have final determination in what care is necessary for the patient. All hospitals in the area are covered by the plan except Children’sHospital in New Orleans.

Gendron said the school board will not see any increase in cost for changing its insurance company.

“We could have saved money on other plans, ” said Gendron, “but we would not have gotten as good a plan as we did with United Healthcare.”The school board accepted the recommendation with a unanimous vote of 10-0. Board member Gerald Keller was absent.The school board also approved Bluebonnet Insurance to cover the dental plans and Eye Care of America and the Unum company for disability insurance. Since all three of these coverages are voluntary, they will notcost the school board any money.

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