The
Grand Prescription Plan
H.R.
is really pushing for a new Mandatory Generic Drug program with raised
tier co-pays. Sadly, there seemed to be no convincing them that when you
further restrict drug benefits while at the same time raising tier
prices, this is cost increase. But...
since it costs the city no
money, changes like this enable management to tell council that Health
Benefits costs weren’t increased. The part that they always leave out
is that costs weren’t increased for ‘the
city’, but they definitely increased for the employees and
retirees.
Anyhow,
H.R. and UHC state that this Mandatory Generic Drug program would save 3
million dollars. Honestly? It really is time to tell the city that if
they reduce anymore benefits or shift anymore expenses to the employees,
there really won’t be much left of the plan. Is it time for more money
to be put in the plan? Yep. Is this something that management wants to
hear? Nope.
The
big threat here from H.R. is if we can’t have the Mandatory Generic
Drug program, the plan costs will increase for everyone. Oh Really? This
is an empty threat. Perhaps we need to have costs increase for everyone,
INCLUDING THE CITY. Why
should all the benefit reductions and cost increases be borne by the
employees and retirees alone? Why shouldn’t the city share the
expense?
That threat didn’t work? Well then how about if we drive a wedge
between the various groups by saying that the increase would include
everyone, not just the people who use prescriptions? What of it? Look,
sooner or later most employees are going to need drugs. The whole point
of group health care is that the costs and the risks are shared and
spread out over the group and over time. We pay then when we are young,
because we need them to be there as we age or get sick. Pitting
the various groups against each other is wrong. The city needs to just
fund the darn plan!
Vacation
Time Adjustment
Our
own Member Services Rep Scott Newland and Steelworker John S. have
brought the issue of unfair vacation disbursement and usage for twelve
hour employees to the attention of Human
Resources.
Currently
employees on mandatory twelve hour shifts are required to use more
vacation per year than other eight hour employees to take off the same
number of days. This despite the fact that both groups earn vacation at
the same rate.
Research
by John S. found that this problem had already be discovered and
corrected for Fire employees who were on twenty-four hour call. Since he
did not think this was fair, he asked Scott to help him draft a
complaint to send to H.R.
Currently
the twelve hour shift civilian employees often have to surrender an
extra four hours of pay when they take vacation just because of the way
their work schedule is set up. It was found that taking vacation while
on twelve hour shifts could cost those employee an extra 104 hours of
vacation time per year, depending on when they took their time.
While
all the details have not yet been worked out yet, Margaret Wright of
Human Resources reports that some adjustments will be made to bring the
vacation time accrual of Civilian twelve hour employees more in line
with the Fire Department twenty-four hour employees.
While
there are some benefits that the uniformed employees get courtesy of the
state or federal government, this was not one of them. So many thanks to
Scott and John S. for seeing that this matter was brought to the
attention of Human Resources and many thanks to Margaret Wright for
working with them and city management to make changes to bring more
fairness into the way Civilian employees have their vacation accrual
time computed.
UHC
- Formulary Problems and Concerns
Dear
Steelworkers,
My
pharmacy fills generics first and only brand names if a generic is not
available or if the physician specifically orders the brand name.
Generics
are supposed to be comparable. However, due to different fillers,
the drug may react differently in some people. For instance, for
pain I can take one brand name Ultram, but to get the same pain relief I
need two Tramadol, which is a Ultrams generic. The different
filler ingredients in these two drugs are the reason.
A
number of drugs that treat autoimmune diseases or cancer are one source
drugs. There are no generics. These drugs are already in the
third tier. What would happen to individuals with these diseases?
Would they be required to pay full cost of the drug because it would not
be covered? If so, then this policy would discriminate against
employees with those diseases.
Some
drugs do not work for everyone. I am in that same situation now
with the proton pumps that are listed on the formulary. None of
them work for me. The last one Protonix causes significant side
effects. However, I have run out of Nexium, and I can not get any
assistance from H.R. I am
asking my physician to appeal after a denial recently received from
United Healthcare.
It
sounds like United Healthcare is getting in the business of telling
physicians what medications they can use. I just received a letter
from UHC stating Advair would go to tier three in May. It gave me
the name of other older drugs. All which have significant side
effects. Instead of using an inhaler twice a day, I would be using
two separate drugs twice a day which would be 4 doses. It is one
thing to stay in a formulary; it is another to use only older drugs
which in some cases have significant serious side effects with black box
warnings. These changes are all about money, and certainly not for the
benefit of patient treatment. What should I do? – Sick of it
Steelworker
Dear
Sick of it,
Well
what ever you do, you never give up. I know, I know. Easy advice to
give, but hard advice to follow, especially if you are feeling tired and
sick. However in your case
help was on the way. After the Steelworkers forwarded your email to all
and sundry in H.R. and UHC, we were able to get authorization to get
another prescription of your Nexium filled to tide you over while your
case was investigated. And while it took several follow up reminders and
a good deal of time to get any answers back, we were all pleased to hear
that the drug you needed, Nexium, was returned to the formulary.
I understand it is still listed as not allowed on their Website
Formulary, but Human Resources Benefits Coordinator, Lonzie Greene, has
assured us that it was put back on the UHC Formulary for City Employees.
However,
your concerns about the constantly changing Formulary and the
substitution of older and sometimes more dangerous drugs are concerns
shared by many employees, and have been forwarded to the Employee Health
Benefit committee. Indeed, several members of the committee have
expressed similar concerns. In fact, it is one of the main concerns we
have with the H.R. and UHC push for the City to go to a ‘Mandatory
Generic Drug’ program. Their answer to our concerns it that, “Your
doctor can appeal for medical reasons to keep you on a specific name
brand drug.” But as you have pointed out, the ability to ‘appeal’
does not mean that you will get approved. And this is not something that
our employees should have to be fighting about when they are sick and at
their weakest.
Snipletts!
Why
checking your HRIS records is important! -
All employees who have earned degrees or certificates of learning since
being employed by the City are advised to check their
education records in the new HRIS system.
It seems that in
some departments, the new management does
not know the capabilities of their employees so they depend very heavily
on the HRIS system when making assignment decisions.
One
of our members was puzzled about the lack
of opportunities
being offered to them in their department. A quick check of their HRIS
records found that the degree they earned in 1999 was not on in their
online records! Of course it was in their personnel file, but it
doesn’t help much if everyone is depending on the new computer system.
They had to contact their departmental H.R. rep with proof of their
education to get their education records updated and corrected.
As
we all know, the HRIS system is subject to occasional meltdowns. All
employees should periodically check their records so corrections can be
made before an opportunity is lost.
Pension
corrections being made
– Thanks to Steelworker John S., Human Resources and the Dallas
Pension Plan are examining the records of hundreds of employees who work
twelve hour shifts. They are correcting past errors where twelve hour
employees were sometimes shorted work pension credit time for having
lost time on their short week. The city is also examining the way that
it reports the time of twelve hour employees to the Pension Plan to
prevent this from occurring in the future.
Additionally
John S. has heard back from the Texas Pension Review board. They are
going to check with the Dallas Pension Plan to make sure that their
methodology of computing pension service credit is fair to all the
employees, not just those on traditional eight hour shifts.
Quoting
H.R. and other fun stuff
- Just when you think that dealing with Human Resources can’t get
anymore fun, it does. Now previously we have had Mr. Greene demanding
that we be more fair and balanced in our reporting, while of course
preserving the right of city publications to only present the
information they deem important. And of course there was that nonsense
in March where what happens in an H.R. meeting was supposed to stay in
an H.R. meeting. So it was
really not much of a surprise that the May meeting produced a request
from H.R. director David Etheridge that H.R., “at least should be
allowed to see anything that they are directly quoted on prior to it’s
publication.”
Show
of hands please from everyone that thinks that is gonna happen in this
lifetime. While it of course pains us to give H.R. newsletter heartburn,
there is a very simple solution. Don’t say anything you may not want
to see reported to the employees, Mary Suhm or the City Council. There,
problem solved. :D
The
Steelworkers need to do what?
– In a way it is kind of flattering, that civilian employees see us as
an agent of change. But guys, guys, guys..... if you ain’t a member,
you don’t get to tell us what we NEED to do. Yes, we understand it is
important, and yes we understand that it affects all civilian
employees... but that is just not how it works.
Just one last time, so there is no misunderstanding, we are going
to explain it again.
If
you are not a member of the Steelworkers, we don’t work for you. This
means that unless a member thinks that something is important, it will
not get the attention you think it deserves. So there is not much we can
do for the non-members that call us asking us to file grievances,
lawsuits, information requests or complaints to council. Honestly, you
really do have to be a member before we can address your issue.
Join now, before you need us.
The Time to Join is Now!
Don’t
forget about the 30 day waiting period on certain services for new
members. We don’t want anyone to miss out on assistance should they
need it. The time to join is now, so you will already be a member before
any problem that you need help with occurs.
