Essex County approves optional 'difference card' health plan after union questioning

The Essex County Board of Commissioners voted to approve Resolution 34, adding a lower-cost state health plan (referred to as the 2035 plan) to the county’s benefit menu and allowing the county to fund an employer HRA mechanism known as a "difference card" for employees who opt in and whose unions agree.

County administration and two vendor representatives outlined the proposal at the meeting. Scott Davenport of Conner Strong & Buckle described how the change works: an employee who switches from the county’s most expensive Direct 10 plan to the 2035 plan would reduce their payroll contribution by roughly 25 percent, while the county would apply part of its premium savings to an HRA (the difference card) that covers co‑pays, deductibles and other out‑of‑pocket amounts. "It's not mandatory. It's totally at the discretion of each employee if their union agrees," Davenport said.

Chris Calderon of EB Employee Solutions, the difference‑card vendor, added that the HRA is an employer‑funded health reimbursement arrangement and that the card is administered to help defray the higher co‑pays under the 2035 design. He said the state sets the out‑of‑pocket maximum that the card must tie to; for 2025, that figure was given in the presentation as $14,720 per family. Calderon said the program has been used in other New Jersey counties and that side‑by‑side comparisons and enrollment materials are available for employees.

Union leaders and public speakers pressed the commissioners on negotiations, wage pressures and long delays in bargaining. "We have been negotiating since August 2023... This is unconscionable," Chris Taylor of IBW Local 1158 told the board during public comment, summarizing labor frustration over stalled contract talks. Union representatives also cautioned that premium savings could be temporary if future rate increases erode the projected gains.

County administration framed the change as a fiscal necessity amid a sharp rise in next year’s benefit costs. The administration said its budget faces a roughly $13 million increase in health benefits and a $6 million pension increase while tax‑increase capacity is limited; officials argued that offering an opt‑in 2035 plus difference‑card pathway can materially reduce the county’s premium exposure and give employees a lower payroll contribution while maintaining coverage. The board also noted that, if a union elects not to participate, the option would not be offered to that unit.

Commissioners asked about consumer protection and fallback rules if the state or the plan design committee changes or eliminates plan options in future years. Davenport and Calderon said the state approval and the union MOU would address those safeguards and that employees would remain eligible to return to their previous plan at open enrollment if the program were discontinued. Davenport described the program as a year‑to‑year process requiring state approval each plan year.

The board approved the resolution by roll call. Commissioners Luciano, Mercado, Murray Thomas, Seibold, Vice President Cooper and President Pomeras voted yes; the record lists several absences. The administration said the program will be voluntary, require union sign‑offs and include the documentation the state requires to protect employee rights.

What happens next: participating unions will receive side‑by‑side and salary‑banded Chapter 78 grids before any employee election; any union that declines will not be offered the option; and the county will implement the change only after reviewing MOUs and enrollment logistics.