Make coverage worse or pay the ObamaTax

[HonestChieffan]

The University of Minnesota had to make its healthcare plans worse in order to avoid Obamacare-related penalties.

The Affordable Care Act levels an excise tax on high-value health coverage plans, and UM would have to pay $48 million with its existing plans. Instead, the university is lowering the quality of its coverage.

“The Office of Human Resources announced in a July email that it was making changes to the UPlan, the employee healthcare program, including adding a deductible and increasing copays for primary and specialty care,” according to the Minnesota Daily. “The email said the cost increases were necessary to help the University avoid a $48 million excise tax in 2018.”

UM employees weren’t pleased with that deal, noted Campus Reform. But after UM offered a three percent salary increase, the union reluctantly agreed.

“This isn’t the deal the table committee wanted; it is better than what the University management committee had been proposing and better than what most other employee groups received,” said the union in a statement.

The deal has not yet been approved by UM’s Board of Regents, however.

UM did not immediately respond to a request for comment.