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East Lansing teacher urges board to retain 80/20 health-insurance option, warns against hard cap
Summary
Heather Mueller, a high-school science teacher and secretary of the East Lansing Education Association, urged the board to keep the district's 80/20 health-insurance structure, saying a hard cap would harm recruitment and force employees to seek additional work to cover medical costs.
During public comment at the Sept. 23 East Lansing Board of Education meeting, Heather Mueller, a 27-year district teacher and secretary of the East Lansing Education Association, asked trustees to retain the district's 80/20 health-insurance option rather than move to a hard-dollar cap on employer coverage.
"I implore you to please keep the 80/20 option," Mueller said. She told trustees that the current 80/20 structure helps the district attract and retain qualified staff, and warned that imposing a hard cap could require employees — especially newer hires, paraprofessionals and administrative assistants — to take additional jobs or increase hours to afford coverage.
Mueller acknowledged district budget pressures and said she understands salary and benefits are major expenditures, but asked trustees to weigh the personal toll on employees who would face out-of-pocket costs beyond a hard cap. She said the recurring nature of the debate causes anxiety for staff and urged the board to consider retention and recruitment impacts when weighing alternatives tied to Public Act 152.
Board members did not take immediate action at the meeting on insurance design; the comment was recorded as part of the public-comment period and will inform future negotiations and policy discussions.
