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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-
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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
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