UC Riverside will soften the blow of upcoming health premium increases by providing subsidies for some employees next year.
The University of California will begin Open Enrollment on Oct. 30, during which employees can review and make changes to their benefits. UC has announced that big changes are in store including increased premiums for employees enrolled in Kaiser Permanente and UC Blue & Gold programs.
The increases are particularly high for Kaiser members. Depending on their pay range, employees could see their premiums more than double. Those in the $73,000 or lower salary range would see increases of $36 a month for single coverage while those who pay for family coverage would face increases of up to $169 a month.
Those in the next pay range, $73,001 to $145,000, would see increases of $28 a month for single coverage and up to $97 a month for family coverage.
Chancellor S. Jack Hu has allocated subsidies for those two salary ranges, which will cover about 1,550 non-represented staff and faculty members through 2026. The subsidy for those in the $73,000 or lower range is up to $100 while the subsidy for those in the $73,001 to $145,000 range is up to $75.
As a result, most employees in those salary groups, the two lowest ranges, will see no increase, said Alex Nájera, associate vice chancellor and chief human resources officer. Only two levels of coverage in the $73,000 or lower group would see increases of $36 (for self plus adult) and $69 a month (self plus family).
No action is required by those eligible employees with UCR automatically applying the subsidies to their paychecks.
Represented employees already have premium caps in place. The campus will address any remaining impacts through the collective bargaining process, Nájera said.
The UC system only learned about the dramatic increases in late September, which would be felt most strongly at UCR. About 63% of UCR employees are enrolled in Kaiser, the largest of any campus and a reflection of the limited health care choices in the region, Nájera said.
Hu felt it was a priority to find money in the campus budget to provide some relief so that employees wouldn’t face a sudden increase, he said.
Nájera described the one-year subsidy as a stopgap measure to give employees time to learn about the changes and explore all their options before potentially higher premiums begin in 2027.
“This is something that employees should expect for next year,” Nájera said. “We want employees to prepare and not be surprised and, at least in the moment, provide some assistance as we go through this difficult transition.”
Human Resources has several informational events scheduled during the Open Enrollment period including a town hall on Nov. 5 co-sponsored by UCR Staff Assembly that Nájera will be participating in.
Workshops, webinars, and virtual office hours are scheduled to deal with specific plans including one for Kaiser members.
Visit the UCR Open Enrollment page on Oct. 30 for more information on benefits changes. Check the UCR events calendar and the Human Resources pages for more information on events.
