racetracks

ChamberChoice health plan launches ‘vigorous’ regional expansion
Dwindling health choices addressed by chambers
By Ralph Nardone
In October, over 22,000 area employees
will be without health insurance coverage
as another insurance carrier, Health
Net, leaves northeast Pennsylvania.
Companies like Health Net have been
backing out of this area over the last
few years because they cannot compete
with local providers, says Jeff
Rubel vice president of the Greater
Scranton Chamber of Commerce.
The affected employers will have to
shop for a replacement insurance carrier
to cover their employee benefits
such as medical insurance, dental and
vision insurance.
However, Rubel believes the local chambers
of commerce in northeast
Pennsylvania offer an employee insurance
plan to their members that can fill the
void created by Health Net’s departure.
The plan, which is administered by the
Chambers of Commerce Service
Corporation (CCSC), offers packages local
employers can customize to fit the needs
of their workforce, he says.
The CCSC plan offers a variety of traditional
and HMO plans as well as dental
and vision coverage at a very competitive
cost, Rubel says.
At this time, about 200 member employers
from the Scranton Chamber are using
the CCSC plan named “ChamberChoice.”
Rubel encourages any local employer
with two to 50 employees to
check with their local chamber
about the ChamberChoice plan.
Rubel said that the ChamberChoice
provides coverage from stable insurance
carriers, such as Blue Cross of Northeast
Pennsylvania, so employers don’t have
to worry about shopping around
because their insurance carrier is
pulling out of the area.
Any employers interested in the CCSC
plan must become members of their
local chamber, which costs them $260
per year. Rubel said that chamber membership
offers many other benefits and
the CCSC insurance plan is one of the
primary ones.
Using ChamberChoice can result in
lower premiums according to Jessica
Hettler, chief operating officer of the
CCSC in Pittsburgh.
She says local employers can save 10 to
25 percent on their insurance premiums
by using the CCSC plan compared to
Health Net’s plan. Hettler adds that the
CCSC plan offers more participating doctors
and hospitals because it works
through Blue Cross.
Hettler points out that ChamberChoice
administers the entire program, including
billing, premium collection, claims processing,
customer service, and so forth —
taking that responsibility away from the
employers, further reducing the cost of
insuring their employees.
She adds that small sized employers
often do not have sophisticated human
resources departments available to keep
up to date on insurance.
“Our ChamberChoice plan is very
attractive to small businesses because it
offers more than medical benefits. It also
offers ‘one-stop shopping’ by offering all
types of insurance through reliable carriers
and the value-added administrative
service provided by CCSC,” Hettler says.
What makes the ChamberChoice plan
so competitive is that it is customized to
the employer’s work force demographics.
The type of work the employees do,
their age and sex, and other variables are
all considered when the premiums are
calculated. Plus, employers can manipulate
coverage and deductibles to reduce
premiums. So, if an employee is willing to
forgo a certain type of coverage the plan
can be altered and savings realized,
Hettler adds.
“ChamberChoice studied its members
over the last decade to determine what
they want for coverage options and at
what cost,” Hettler says. CCSC put together
the current plan and is finding an
increasing number of employers are signing
on each year.
Hettler is confident ChamberChoice
will expand significantly locally in the
coming years.
“We have a vigorous expansion program
in place for northeast Pennsylvania,”
Hettler says.
She adds that ChamberChoice will continue
to work with the best insurance
carriers available.
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Economist: no evidence
of ‘housing bubble’
With slow economic growth, stagnant
or slightly rising mortgage rates,
and a disappointing job market, housing
sales in the near future may be
dependent on consumer confidence
and affordability, a Penn State
Economist wrote as part of a quarterly
economic review for the Pennsylvania
Association of Realtors (PAR).
Fortunately, homes across Pennsylvania
remain at a fairly affordable rate, according
to Dr. Jacob De Rooy, an economist in
the School of Business Administration,
Penn State Harrisburg campus.
“The Pennsylvania Affordability Index is
still high.Affordability depends largely on
housing prices, buyers’ incomes, interest
rates and other credit conditions,” De
Rooy said.“Housing prices are not likely
to grow at the torrid pace of the last few
years. In some regions of Pennsylvania
they are declining.As long as unemployment
does not increase, housing prices
do not rise above the general inflation
rate (or decline), and mortgage interest
rates do not increase, we can expect that
affordability may actually increase.That
will strengthen the market.”
De Rooy said home-buying decisions
are influenced by consumer confidence
in the future. Higher levels of consumer
confidence could strengthen demand for
single family homes over the next few
months and off-set any upward creep in
mortgage rates.
“The sharp decline in mortgage interest
rates did much to boost housing demand
up to this time, so do not expect any significant
declines in the next year or two,”
De Rooy said.“It is possible that interest
rates will drift upward when economic
recovery really takes hold.This forecast is
based on projections of inflation.While
prices of manufactured goods have been
soft, prices of services are rising. The
U.S. is largely a service economy so that
costs of services are more important
than are prices of manufactured items.”
De Rooy also wrote that while some
experts predict that the housing bubble
will burst, that there are few indications
that will actually happen.
“Despite all the talk by non-professionals
outside real estate, there is no evidence
of a housing price bubble,” De
Rooy wrote.“However, the growth rate of
housing prices, which has been very
high in most regions, will moderate to a
more conventional level.”
Coast Guard Auxiliary sets
‘boating certification’ class
The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla
15-04 is conducting a 10-week “Boating
Skills & Seamanship” course beginning
September 29.The course covers the
requirements needed to obtain a state
boating certificate, which is now mandatory
for persons born on or after January 1,
1982 operating a powerboat of more than
25 horsepower on Pennsylvania waters.
The bill,Act 199 of 2002, was signed by
former Gov. Schweiker and became effective
on Feb. 7. Course topics include
engine maintenance, trailering, navigation,
boating rules, weather, the buoy system,
communications and safety equipment,
and usage.The information is applicable
to watercraft of every size. For more information,
call (570) 383-3842.
36 • NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA BUSINESS JOURNAL • SEPTEMBER 2003