Star Tribune
Insurance changes could prompt caregiver exodus, Hennepin health care workers say
Union workers at Hennepin County Medical Center are frustrated over health insurance changes they say will result in higher costs for less comprehensive coverage — and drive caregivers away to other hospitals.
Members of unions representing nurses, emergency care providers and other staffers held a news conference Tuesday morning to urge the Hennepin County Board to reject Hennepin Healthcare Systems’ annual budget plan. The County Board oversees the nonprofit, which operates Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) and several clinics with a proposed 2024 budget of $1.48 billion.
The health system’s budget was up for consideration at the board’s regular Tuesday afternoon meeting, but commissioners decided to wait until Dec. 12 to take a final vote. Commissioner Angela Conley, who leads the board’s health committee, and Commissioner Jeff Lunde said they still had questions that needed to be answered before they felt comfortable voting.
“People are generally concerned about the process, about their benefits,” Conley said. “I want to be sure that my constituents and the employees of the hospital are taken care of before I vote on it.”
The delay was a welcome development for Janelle Johnson Thiele, an HCMC nurse and a leader with the Minnesota Nurses Association, who is one of several employees who have spoken out against the proposed changes.
“I’m thankful they are going to take the time to go back and get the information they need,” Johnson Thiele said. “We have to do something to keep people here (at HCMC).”
Jennifer DeCubellis, Hennepin Healthcare CEO, acknowledged it was a “tough budget” when she presented it to the board Nov. 14. She noted that the hospital system faced a $127 million budget gap and had to make modest changes to worker benefits rather than cut elsewhere.
Hospital officials have characterized workers’ concerns as overblown. They say most of the 4,000 union staffers affected by the changes should see stable or reduced premiums, and say their benefits will remain among the best in the region.
Sam Erickson, vice president of the Hennepin County Association of Paramedics and EMTs, disputed that claim during Tuesday’s news conference at the Hennepin County Government Center. He said premium adjustments might have been modest, but other modifications are troubling to members, including the decision to no longer cover weight loss drugs like semaglutide, which is sold under the name Wegovy.
“The coverage is significantly worse,” Erickson said. “They are pulling the rug out from under folks.”
Union leaders also noted that the health plan changes are coming after DeCubellis received a pay raise of more than 15%, and that the CEO will earn roughly $1 million in 2023. In a statement, the health system’s board said DeCubellis’ pay was competitive and it was important HCMC could attract and retain top leaders.
Caregivers also worry rising health care costs could mean more workers turn to HCMC where the cost they pay for care is cheaper. They argue that caregivers already struggle to handle the high volume of patients at the county’s primary safety-net hospital.
“It already takes months to get appointments,” said Johnson Thiele. “Our patients are going to go to the ER when they can’t get appointments.”
Hennepin Healthcare leaders say the number of workers who get care at HCMC is expected to be slightly lower in 2024 and that they continue to work to improve access for all patients.
Finally, staffers are frustrated that an $8 million supplemental appropriation from the County Board was not entirely used to keep health care costs low and maintain existing coverage. They say hospital leaders used about $4.5 million to help with benefit costs and the rest is being used for other expenses, like improving safety and employee wellness.
This year, Hennepin County contributed about $27 million to HCMC to help with uncompensated care.
HCMC workers are not the only ones to express frustration to the County Board over rising healthcare costs. In September, county human services workers who belong to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Workers Local 34 protested benefit changes and higher costs.
The County Board agreed to put $500 in worker health spending accounts to offset some of those increases. County leaders said pay increases should help further offset rising insurance costs and that benefits were among the best in the region.
The County Board is working to finalize its 2024 budget for final approval Dec. 12.
Two people from Minnetonka were killed late Friday afternoon when their GMC Suburban ran a stop sign and was struck by a GMC Yukon headed north on Hwy. 169 west of Palisade, Minn.
According to the State Patrol, Marlo Dean Baldwin, 92, and Elizabeth Jane Baldwin, 61, were dead at the scene. The driver of the Suburban, a 61-year-old Minnetonka man, was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The Suburban, pulling a trailer, was headed east on Grove Street/County Rd. 3 at about 5:15 p.m. when it failed to stop at Hwy. 169 and was struck by the northbound Yukon. The Yukon then struck two westbound vehicles stopped at the intersection.
Four people from Zimmerman, Minn., in the Yukon, including the driver, were taken to HCMC with life-threatening injuries, while two passengers were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Three girls in the Yukon ranged in age from 11 to 15.
The drivers of the two vehicles struck by the Yukon were not injured, the State Patrol said. Road conditions were dry at the time of the accident, and alcohol was not believed to have been a factor. All involved in the accident were wearing a seat belt except for Elizabeth Baldwin.
Hill City police and the Aitkin County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.
Amid the cacophony and chaos of the pregame preparation before a recent Minnetonka High School football game, an exceptional group of six girls is gathered together among the school’s deep and talented cheerleading and dance teams.
The cheerleaders, a national championship-winning program of 40 girls, dot the track around the football field. As the clock ticks down to kickoff and their night of choreographed routines begins, the six girls, proudly wearing Minnetonka blue T-shirts emblazoned with “Skippers Nation” and shaking shiny pom-poms, swirl around the track, bristling with excited energy.
Their circumstances are no different from any of the other cheerleaders with one notable exception: The girls on this team have special needs.
They’re members of the Minnetonka Sparklers, a squad of cheerleaders made up solely of girls with special needs.
A football game at Minnetonka High School is an elaborate production. The Skippers’ recent homecoming victory over Shakopee brought an announced crowd of 8,145. And that is just paying attendees; it doesn’t include school staffers, coaches, dance team, marching band, concession workers, media members and others going about their business attached to the game.
The Sparklers program, now in its 12th season, was the brainchild of Marcy Adams, a former Minnetonka cheerleader who initiated the program in her senior year of high school. Adams has been coach of the team since its inception, staying on through her tenure as a cheerleader at the University of Minnesota.
She started the program after experiencing the Unified Sports program at Minnetonka. The unified sports movement at high schools brings together student-athletes with cognitive or physical disabilities and athletes with no disabilities to foster relationships, understanding and compassion through athletics. Many Minnesota schools offer unified sports.
“I grew up in a household that valued students with special needs and valued inclusion,” Adams said. “I saw a need to give to those students. At Minnetonka, we have a strong Unified program, and this was a great opportunity to build relationships and offer mentorship opportunities.”
Elite runners are in a league of their own.
To get a sense of how far ahead elite runners are compared to the rest of us, the Minnesota Star Tribune took a look at how their times compare to the average marathon participant.
The 2022 Twin Cities Marathon men’s winner was Japanese competitor Yuya Yoshida, who ran the marathon in a time of 2 hours, 11 minutes and 28 seconds, for an average speed of 11.96 mph. He averaged 5 minutes and 2 seconds per mile.
That’s more than twice the speed of the average competitor across both the men’s and women’s categories, of 5.89 mph, according to race results site Mtec. The average participant finished in 4 hours, 26 minutes and 56 seconds. That comes out to an average time of 10 minutes and 11 seconds per mile.
And taking it to the most extreme, the fastest-ever marathon runner, Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya, finished the 2023 Chicago Marathon in 2 hours and 35 seconds, for an average pace of about 13 mph. Kiptum averaged 4 minutes and 36 seconds per mile.
Here is a graphic showing these differences in average marathon speed.
