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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (March 15, 2004)
Smoke Signals 3 MARCH 15, 2004 General Council Report Introduces New Health Plan Administrators By Ron Karten The March General Council meeting was held on Sunday, March 7, at the Tribal Community Center in Grand Ronde. Here are the highlights: Tribal Chairwoman Cheryle Kennedy called the meeting to or der; Tribal Council member Val Grout offered the invocation. Risk Manager and Tribal mem ber Debbie Larsen introduced rep resentatives from KPMG LLC, hired by the Tribe to evaluate health insurance options, and United Medical Resources, Inc. (UMR), the third party administra tor that will, for the foreseeable future, manage the health plans for Tribal employees and the mem bership. Tribal employees were switched over to the new administrators on March 1. The switchover for Tribal members, initially planned for April, has been put off temporarily while the Tribe resolves outstand ing legal issues. With health care costs rising by 6-8 percent a year, according to KPMG Director of Native American Practice John A. Ellis (Chippewa, Ojibwe), "The Tribal Council felt it would be irresponsible not to ad dress this question again." Cost savings that Tribal Finan cial Officer Larry Kovach estimated at $1.5-2 million a year will come as a result of the Tribe moving from fully insured to self-insured. In a fully insured program, premiums pay for a package of benefits, not all of which the Tribe needs. Other needs may not be included in the package, so moving to self-insurance with the guidance of a third party administrator, as UMR is called, enables the Tribe to pay only for benefits its employees and members can use, but also include other benefits on an "a la carte" basis. Savings also come because the Tribe pays each claim itself rather than relying on an insurer to make the payments. By relying on the insurer, the Tribe's premiums cover the most expensive scenario. By self-insuring, the Tribe pays only for the claims, which in most cases are far less than the most expen sive year. Last year, for example, the Tribe recorded no claims of over $100,000. Tribal members sought informa- V? ( ) -Q y"' Risk Manager and Tribal Member Debbie Larsen tion about potential cost increases and program changes, but no changes are anticipated for either Tribal members or employees. Co pays, deductibles and the panel of professionals serving Tribal mem bership and employees will remain exactly the same. Tribal member Betty Bly asked if members will be discouraged from going to the doctor or denied tests or pharmacy items to save the Tribe money under the new administra tors. "No," said Tribal Council member Valorie Sheker-Robertson, and any apparent instances of it should be reported to Debbie Larsen in the Governance Center at 503-879-2332. In response to a question about whether the Tribe was considering using the savings to fund health care for under-55, non-member spouses of Tribal Elders, Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle Kennedy said that the discussion had not yet begun. "We want to see how the plan unfolds, first," she said. The cost of insuring non members is "three to four times" as much as insuring members, said Kennedy. And in addition, the Tribe is growing as new members are born, and this also means greater health care expense for the Tribe. On other matters, Tribal Council member Jan D. Reibach reported that on a recent official visit to Wash ington, D.C., council mem bers met with six Congress people and four Senators to discuss Tribal issues. "The proposed budget for the Bu reau of Indian Affairs cut funding in every aspect ex cept for the reorganization of the bureau. The disturb ing part for us as Tribal lead ers is that in terms of housing, health and education, for every $100 applied for, one dollar will be allotted." Reibach encouraged Tribal mem bers to register and vote in the fall. Kennedy added that "In the trea ties of the five Tribes, health care was one of the things promised to us. Our lands were given up as pre payment. It seems like our present administration is not interested in maintaining those promises. "We provide testimony. We have a lobbyist in Washington. We don't let the government off the hook on these things," said Kennedy. Tribal member Linda Bean Olson said that she had been un aware that Council members had gone to Washington, and asked the Council to "develop some forum to let us know" about Tribal Council member official activities. Kennedy thought it a good idea and suggested that Council News might be the right place for such announcements. Tribal member Betty Bly thanked the council for reducing the rent at Elder Housing. "Thank you. We really appreciate that," she said, and went on to thank the council for the new teacher in the lan guage program, and the Elders Committee for thinking of her with flowers when she was in the hos pital recently. Tribal I lousing Authority Execu tive Director Carina Kistler Ginter, in response to a question request ing tenant meetings at Chxi Musam Illihi, the newest Tribal housing development, said that meetings were being developed and should begin in May. Door prize winners included $50 winners: Tribal members Clarice Ellison, Jocelyn Kirk and Cultural Resources Manager June Olson, who donated her winnings to the Cultural Resources Department; and the $100 winner was Tribal Elder Janet Phillips. Among announcements: An Elders group photograph has been arranged for March 31 after lunch and the Elders Meeting in the Community Center. The next General Council Meeting will be April 4 at the Community Center; Community meetings seeking in put and ideas from the membership will be held from 6 8:30 p.m. on May 4 at the Sweetbrier Inn in Tualatin, May 13 at the Red Lion in Eugene and May 25 at the Com munity Center here in Grand Ronde. D i" ip. r i m Summit Members representing the Tribe's 1 4 commit tees met at the casino on Friday, March 5 for the Second An nual Committee Summit. Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle Kennedy is at left. Accounts Receivable Specialist Amy Gal lant, right, describes some of the forms required of committee members for reimbursements and travel requests. Below are members of the Elders' Committee, fromleft.Tribal Elders Louise Coulson, Chair Arlene Beck, Ruby Bigoni,Bernice Jensen, Louise Medeiros and Cherie Butler. "We look to you to tell us what's happening with the membership," said Tribal Council Chair woman Cheryle Kennedy. Photos by Peta Tinda ' , : Mr .1.,r.e::rsfor .3 '" -. - . , ?, :.ccr;:e!cil .1 "
