As reported by nj.com, public employees, from state workers to local school teachers, may now choose from a wider range of health plans that include low-cost options and some with narrower coverage as they start paying more for their benefits. The signature benefit reform enacted by Governor Chris Christie calls for cheaper plans while demanding higher contributions from workers. 

The state hopes to save $10 million this year through those changes alone. The future savings will grow because as workers pay a greater share of their health plan costs they may select cheaper options, lowering the expense to the state, officials said. But New Jersey is also asking for help from the federal government. The state applied for a $90 million federal program, which will cover part of the state’s bill for retiree prescription plans.

Two state panels created to review health benefits voted this week to approve a raft of new health plans, amounting to 15 choices for public employees. The rates are not fixed until they get approved by a permanent state commission, which is scheduled to act next week.

In building the health insurance plans, Treasury officials anticipate using a new federal Employee Group Waiver plan to save around $90 million in the state’s obligation for retiree prescriptions. The waiver plan is available through President Obama’s health care reform, which allows employers and states to benefit from changes to Medicare. State Treasury officials confirmed the state would file an application to the federal government, through insurance provider Medco. Part of that savings, $20 million, will be used this year to offset rises in health care costs for retired workers. The amount ensures a cap on certain co-pays for retirees in plans at 2011 levels.

The new health plans are part of a shift away from what Christie has called “Cadillac” health care coverage offered to state workers and largely paid for by the state. State employers and local governments could pay $2,000 more for an employee’s family coverage annually than current plans, according to summaries provided by state officials. But at the lower end of the scale, the cheapest plans would be an estimated $7,000 lower than the current affordable options. Workers will pay a fraction of that total premium, but that fraction will increase in July over the next three years.

In late June, Christie ordered a 12-member panel to devise the new plans as part of a controversial law to make public workers contribute more for their health care. The panel missed an August deadline, raising questions over whether Christie’s signature policy would be implemented smoothly.

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DONALD C. BARBATI, JR.

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues…

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues litigated before the courts and administrative tribunals throughout the State of New Jersey. In addition, Mr. Barbati also routinely represents individuals in various types of public pension appeals, real estate transactions, and general litigation matters. He is a frequent contributor to the New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog, a free legal publication designed to keep New Jersey public safety officers up-to-date and informed about legal issues pertinent to their profession. During his years of practice, Mr. Barbati has established a reputation for achieving favorable results for his clients in a cost-efficient manner.

Mr. Barbati has also handled numerous novel legal issues while representing New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Most notably, he served as lead counsel for the Appellants in the published case In re Rodriguez, 423 N.J. Super. 440 (App. Div. 2011). In that case, Mr. Barbati successfully argued on behalf of the Appellants, thereby overturning the Attorney General’s denial of counsel to two prison guards in a civil rights suit arising from an inmate assault.  In the process, the Court clarified the standard to be utilized by the Attorney General in assessing whether a public employee is entitled to legal representation and mandated that reliance must be placed on up-to-date information.

Prior to becoming a practicing attorney, Mr. Barbati served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Linda R. Feinberg, Assignment Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer Vicinage. During his clerkship Mr. Barbati handled numerous complex and novel substantive and procedural issues arising from complaints in lieu of prerogative writs, orders to show cause, and motion practice. These include appeals from decisions by planning and zoning boards and local government bodies, bidding challenges under the Local Public Contract Law, Open Public Records Act requests, the taking of private property under the eminent domain statute, and election law disputes. In addition, Mr. Barbati, as a certified mediator, mediated many small claims disputes in the Special Civil Part.

Mr. Barbati received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, magna cum laude, from Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Upon graduating, Mr. Barbati attended Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2007, he received his juris doctorate, magna cum laude, graduating in the top five percent of his class. During law school, Mr. Barbati interned for the Honorable Joseph E. Irenas, Senior United States District Court Judge for the District of New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey, assisting on various constitutional, employment, and Third Circuit Court of Appeals litigation, including numerous civil rights, social security, and immigration cases.