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Utyp iailg Sar Mwl State health pilot to face future scrutiny UNC plan could serve as a model BY ERIC JOHNSON ASSISTANT STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR With the UNC system still awaiting legislative approval for its employee health insurance ini tiative, the plan already is drawing intense interest within the univer sity and beyond. The pilot program, if imple mented, will be drawing scrutiny from lawmakers and state officials already concerned with the bal looning cost of health care and its impact on the state. “I think that (the university is) trying to respond to the same problems that the rest of state government has,” said Sherry Melton, spokeswoman for the State Employees Association of North Carolina. “Health care is such a concern for all state employees, and all state employees would like to have more choices.” Providing more choices and better coverage has long been a critical concern for the university system, with officials calling North Carolina’s state health plan non competitive when weighed against the benefits offered by other states. Employee satisfaction surveys conducted by the UNC-system Division of Human Resources found that just under 58 percent of university employees reported being satisfied with the state health plan. UNC-Chapel Hill had the lowest reported rating of any of the 16 sys tem campuses, with just 49 percent of faculty and staff calling them selves “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their state health coverage. “It’s important to have a health package that reflects that value, the value we place on the fac ulty and others that work for the University,” said Lewis Margolis, a professor in the maternal and child health department at UNC CH and a member of the steering committee that helped develop the UNC health pilot. The shortcomings of the exist ing state health plan especially in terms of coverage for children and families of employees con sistently have been cited by system officials as an obstacle to attracting and retaining faculty. The state health plan does not charge a premium for employee coverage, but the cost of including family members under the plan is substantial. Coverage for each child costs $l7B a month, and coverage for a whole family is priced at $427. Margolis said health benefits can play an important role in influenc ing career decisions, and not just for university or state employees. “Health benefits are an impor tant part of compensation,” he said. “Generally, health benefits and the fact that health benefits are linked to work does cause distortions in people making decisions about whether, to take a job or leave a job.” That fact is well-known to cam pus administrators who face the challenge of attracting talented faculty in a highly competitive environment. “I think that the people who are concerned about hiring this would be the (department) chairs * CCufo Nova Thrift Shop *- Graduating? Moving? Downsizing? Donate to Club Nova Thrift Shop! Help raise funds to assist adults living with mental illness. ► 'We accept new and gently- used clothing, shoes, jewelry, ” books, music, house and kitchen items, electronics and small appliances, as well as select furniture Tues-Fri 10AM-6PM - y Sat 10 am-4 pm Club Nova promotes and provides opportunities for (919) 967-698S individuals with mental illness to lead meaningful and 103 C West Main St., Carrboro productive lives Of their choice in the community. (Downtown Carrboro behind Wendy's} All donations are tax-deductible. www.clubnovashop.com || Duke University Medical Center The Genetics of Environmental Asthma Healthy non-smokers || (age 18-40), with mild asthma or allergies. And a few people without asthma or allergies are asked to participate an asthma study. Three visits required. Compensation offered. Contact person: Catherine Foss 919.668.3599 •fossooos@mc.duke.edu (RR #2J57 and the search committees they do express the concern that we are not competitive, not as competi tive as we could be, as far as this particular aspect of compensation here at Carolina,” Margolis said. Leslie Winner, UNC-system vice president for legal affairs, said sys tem officials have been focused on those issues for quite some time. “We’ve had concern from our administrators and our employees over the last several years, since the costs have gone up and the benefits have gone down in the state health plan.” It was with these concerns in mind that officials in the UNC-sys tem Office of the President decided last summer to make a push for the pilot program. A 20-member steer ing committee began meeting last August to study the feasibility of creating a university health insur ance program independent of the state plan. The university’s plan will include about 36,000 system employees, plus the families of those who decide to opt for depen dent coverage. “Obviously, it has to be a fairly big undertaking for us,” said Kitty McCollum, UNC-system asso ciate vice president for human resources. Using the same level of funding that the university now contributes to the state plan, officials believe they can provide UNC employees with more options and lower out of-pocket costs. “What they’re hoping to do is take the same amount of money they get from the General Assembly and redistribute how they spend that to help underwrite the cost of those dependent premiums,” said Ginny Klarman, manager of com pliance and member services for the State Health Plan. Klarman served on the universi ty’s steering committee as a repre sentative of the state plan. Officials hope to provide a core Preferred Provider Option that will not charge any premium to employ ees and provide benefits similar to the state plan, along with three or four other plans that would charge an employee premium but provide more expansive benefits. The university also hopes to implement a more comprehensive disease management program and broader preventative care options. Even if the plan proves suc cessful in providing better, more cost-effective coverage for univer sity employees, some state officials are concerned about the potential impact on the existing state health plan. “We’re concerned that it will drive up costs for everyone else in the plan,” Melton said. “It would definitely deflate the plan’s pur chasing power and ability to nego tiate rates from suppliers.” Having such a large number of employees withdraw from the state plan could adversely affect the risk pool, she said, particularly because retired university employees will remain on the state plan. The university would study the issue of retiree coverage after the pilot program has been under way News “It is offering choice ... to just a small segment of the state’s employees.” SHERRY MELTON, STATE EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION for a couple of years, McCollum said. “We would determine what we want to do for future retirees after that point.” Failing to include retirees in the pilot, Melton contends, is unfair because retiree health costs tend to be higher than those for active employees. More broadly, she said, the pilot itself raises questions of fairness. “It is offering choice, and per haps even richer benefits, to just a small segment of the state’s employees.” University officials have said a successful pilot could serve as a model for the state health plan. N.C. Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, sponsor of the UNC Health Pilot bill, said lawmakers will be taking a close look at the concerns expressed by the state plan and the state employees asso ciation. “The whole basis of insurance is spreading the risk across the broadest group that you can,” he said. “When you reduce the size of the group, you need to really look at what you’ve got left and what the implications of that are.” The earliest the plan could be implemented, McCollum said, is July 2006. The pilot would run through 2012, giving university officials time to assess its impact. There is no way to predict where the university will go from there, Margolis said, because the whole landscape of health care might have changed. “To predict what things are going to be like in 2012 as far as health care, that would be quite extreme.” Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu. The Office of Undergraduate Admissions would like to thank the following students, faculty, and staff for their help and support with Explore Carolina 2005. The Admissions Office invited each admitted student to visit campus as they made their final college choice. The students, faculty, and staff listed below had a hand in helping us enroll the best and the brightest to UNC! THANK YOU! Students Chris Kueler Abby Brogdon Christina Rexrode Adam Geller Clare Merlin Adrian Lee Crystal Carter Alan Byerly Dana Hrelic Alexandra Thomas Dani Janklow Alicia Jones Dani Volker Alison Hawkins Danielle Shapiro Allison Booth David Ruskey Allison Carr David Steber Allison Ramsey Dina Faddah Andrew Carlberg Douglas Weiss Andrew Satten Elizabeth Barry Angela Crocker Elizabeth Jarvis Ann Scaff Elizabeth Leyda Arielle Pacer Elizabeth Menninga Ashley Beres Elizabeth Mosley Becky Carson Emile Petrone Blaire Huntley Eric Steinberg Brad Horn Erica Gill Brandi Brooks Erika Stallings Brian Mullis Erin Hailes Brooks Pope Erin Hardee Cara Perinetti Ese Oghenejobo Carly Shanahan Greg Charville Catherine Adamson Greg Found Catherine Durham Greg Parker Chasity Wilson Hana Crume Chiquita Caudle Heather Foust Faculty Prof. Robert Daniels - Anthropology Prof. Tim McMillan - African & African American Studies Prof. Gerald Cecil - Physics Prof. Paul Kropp - Chemistry Prof. Michael Salemi - Economics Prof. Joe Lowman - Psychology Prof. John Harris - Drama Prof. David Sontag - Communication Studies Prof. Donald Lauria - Environmental Sciences Prof. David Rubin - Business Prof. Gary Bishop - Computer Science Prof. Sean Washburn - Physics Prof. Charlie Toggle - Journalism and Mass Communications Prof. Siegfried Mews - Germanic Languages Prof. Sharon James - Classics Prof. Ann Dunbar - African & African American Studies Stuff Danielle Mitchell Amy Hathom Dara Wilson-Grant Bill LaFrankie David Eckert Bob Wirag Dennis Emy Brandon Hammond Erica Bozeman Brian Linder Frank Kessler Candace Dorwart Friederike Muehls Carolyn Magruder . Geoff Baldwin Cheryl Walker Gina Platz Daniel Gold Jerry Greenwood Dcpartmenti/Organixution* Academic Advising Admissions Ambassadors APPLES Service Learning Burch Field Research Campus Recreation Campus Y Career Services Carolina Dining Services Sports Illustrated writer to make a stop at UNC Reilly to speak Tuesday in free lecture BY DANIEL MALLOY SPORTS EDITOR Gary Smith strode to the podium at the National Sportswriter of the Year banquet, but once again, it wasn’t his party. Smith was there to introduce Rick Reilly and hand him his ninth Sportswriter of the Year Award. He was secretly seething at the success of his Sports Illustrated counterpart, and he and his family were ready to let the world in on his pain. Before Smith could get into his speech, his sisters emerged from the crowd, bearing a sign that read: “Rick Reilly is an award hog.” They descended upon Reilly, bound him and put a hood over his head in protest. If that couldn’t stop Reilly, what can? The author is back to claim his 10th award this year, and on his way to Salisbury to pick up the hardware, he is stopping off at the University for a lecture and question-and answer session at 7 p.m. Tuesday in 111 Carroll Hall. The award hog is most famous for his weekly “Life of Reilly” column that runs on the last page of SI, the first signed weekly editorial in the storied history of the publication. Reilly said Smith really is the best sportswriter in America, but NEED SUMMER STORAGE? Village Self Storage p Main 0 \ conveniently located 1.4 miles .> — from the UNC campus / J \ JT[ V —• 942-7725 %\ 515 S. Greensboro Street, V\" v. storage )/ Carrboro, NC Visit our facility online at: vrS) www.villageselfstorage.com // Heather Hayes Kate Silver Inger Brody Kate Vlach Jack Whaley Kate Wassum Jacqueline Dorry Katie Cunningham James Brown Katie Macpherson James Fritz Katie McNeil James Jolley Kayla Tausche James Norton Keeshna Levy Jamie Duff Kelli Clifton Janet Ward Kendall Southern Jason Fisher Kenny Olson JD Hermann Kitty Ellison Jeff Nguyen Koreena Bobo Jennifer Hansen Kristen Smith Jennifer Miller Kyle Beaulieu Jennifer Smith Laura Lilly Jenny Ruby Laura Reksc Jenny Stevens Laura Vincent Jessica Cottle Lauren Moskowitz Jessica Eisenbart Lauren Rippey Jim Baker Lee Lilley Jonathan Lee Leigha Blackwell Jordon Fisher Leniqua Blue Jourdie Stuart Lillian Anderson Judd Englert Lindsay Foley Julia Bobbitt Lindsay Speros Julie Davis Lisa Klingenmaier Kate Herbein Liz Carter Kate Jackson Lyndsay Mills Prof. William Andrews - English Prof. Dan Reichart - Physics Prof. Laura Janda - Slavic Languages Prof. Laurie McNeill - Physics Prof. Jan Boxill - Philosophy Prof. Joseph Flora - English Prof. Adriano Duque - Romance Languages Prof. Jeff Cornell - Drama Prof. Holden Thorpe - Chemistry Prof. Greg Forest - Mathematics Prof. Steve Walsh - Geography Prof. John McGowan - English Prof. Dagmar Divjak - Slavic Languages Prof. Alfred Field - Economics Prof. Dan Anderson - Mathematics Prof. Daniel Gitterman - European Studies Prof. Dennis Zaborowski - Art Prof. Elaine Yeh - Biology Prof. Greg Forest - Mathematics Prof. Gustavo Maroni - Biology Jacquelyn Gist Liz Foster Jonathan Friday Madge Hubbard Judy Deshotels Marcia Harris Dr. Julia Kruse Marian Holmes Karen James Marilyn Wyrick Karen Scott Mary Rushing Laniece Dillon Mark Knowles Linwood Futrelle Marty Pomerantz Lisa Parker Michele Stauffer Liz Cupp Mike Johnson CCI Cold Stone Creamery Freshman Camp Granville Towers Housing and Residential Education Kenan Football Stadium Facilities and Operations Learning Center New Student and Parent Programs Public Safety he still has no plans to relinquish his claim on the trophy. “I’ve never been named to People’s 50 Most Beautiful,” Reilly said Thursday in a phone interview. “I’ve never won an MVP or a Final Four. This is my one aw ard to win. ... I just suck at everything else.” In addition to his SI duties, Reilly is a bestselling author and most recently chipped his way onto the New York Times bestseller list with “Who’s Your Caddy?” which shares his golfing exploits with famous names from Jack Nicklaus to Donald Thimp. “I juggle and do magic, too,” Reilly quipped. Sports Illustrated was always his love, though. A 12-year-old Reilly got his first taste of the big time by lugging camera equipment around for SI photographer Walter loss at a Colorado football game. After graduating from CU, Reilly began sportswriting at the Denver Post, and the big break seemed to be on the horizon. One day Reilly’s roommate handed him the phone. SI had finally called. “Is this Rick Reilly?” asked the voice on the other end. “Is this really Sports Illustrated?” Reilly responded, barely able to contain his excitement for what could come next. Lynne Harden Rob Sellers Madeline Walter Robin Graham Mallory Cash Ruthie Warshenbrot Mandy Hampton Ryan Landoll Manish Dayal Sarah Bond Mariel Furlong Sarah Bumgarner Mary Harrell Sarah Edwards Matt Angelo Sarah Gitt Matt Brooks Sarah Jones Matt Ezzell Sergio Lineberger Matt Farebee Shanda Moyers Matthew Breazeale Shea Grisham Maya Rosman Sheena Melton Maya Sirur Sherry Rhodes Megan Garrett Stephanie Newton Megan Jordan Stephen Lassiter Megan Paul Steve Chow Megan Rolfe Steve Senzer Meredith Crews Stuart Jeckel Meredith Dixon Tar Heel Voices Meredith Gilliam Teddy Kirby Morgan Allison Tiffany McDole Nicole Evangelista Tiffany White Patty Robbins Vova Shklovsky Priyanka Rao Zafia Anklesaria Rebecca Carson Rebecca Chasnovitz Rebecca Rolfe Ricky Leung Prof. Jan Boxill - Philosophy ‘ vUs Prof. Jim Leloudis - History Prof. Joe Lowman - Psychology Prof. Jon Engel - Physics Prof. Karl Peterson - Mathematics Prof. Kevin Jeffay - Computer Science Prof. Laurie McNeil - Physics Prof. Lucia Binotti - Romance Languages Prof. Pat Pukilla - Biology Prof. Robert Daniels - Anthropology Prof. Seth Reice - Biology Prof. Stephen Weiss - Computer Science Prof. Stuart MacDonald - Political Science Prof. Terence Mclntosh - History Prof. Tom Baer - Chemistry Prof. Tom Bowers - Journalism and Mass Communications Prof. Jeff Cannon - Business Mike Li Sheila Hrdlicka Mimi Keever Susan Pratt Nita Gerringer Tim Stiles Patsy Huff Todd Utter Regan Zwald Vergie Taylor Ritchie Grimsley Vicki Lotz Rick Bradley Wayne Stevenson Rick Steinbacher Scott Dwyer Scott Hudson Signs Now Occasions Engraving Student Health Services Student Stores Student Union Events Planning Student Union Operations and Information Desk Student Union Production Services Study Abroad FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2005 “Yes,” said the caller. “And do you realize that for only 79 cents an issue you can subscribe ...” Reilly hung up the phone, but after two years at the Los Angeles Times, SI was calling again. For real, this time. The young sportswriter quickly made his mark at SI with a distinc tive voice that brought him high praise —and higher paychecks. In 1998 Reilly was courted by upstart ESPN the Magazine, but SI reeled him back in with a raise and the promise of a back-page column —and he’s been hogging awards ever since. One of his most notable “Life of Reilly" moments occurred when he used the column to break the story of the abuse suffered by female kicker Katie Hnida while she was a member of Colorado’s football team. The report has since led to the resignation of the athletic director and the chancellor, but not head coach Gary Barnett. “How do you explain that?” Reilly asked. And the fallout has been harsh from CU, who has since removed him from the “famous alumni” sec tion of the football media guide. “I was like a Russian czar,” Reilly said. “All of a sudden I don’t exist.” Sometimes his colleagues wish the same. At least there would be more awards to go around. Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu. 13
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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April 29, 2005, edition 1
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