Thanks to Infusion of Federal COVID Relief Funds
TRS-ActiveCare Rates Won’t Increase
An infusion of $703 million in one-time federal coronavirus relief funding allocated to the state resulted in the TRS board adopting (April 28) TRS-ActiveCare self-insured health plan rates for the upcoming plan year that won’t increase, and in some cases will decrease (press release/more info).

In the months leading up to the board’s vote on ActiveCare rates, it had been expected that “only” the $268 million in federal COVID-19 funds appropriated by the Legislature to the TRS last year would be available to drive down the plan’s costs for the upcoming plan year, which begins on Sept. 1, 2022.

But, the governor and other top-level legislative leaders unexpectedly announced the allocation of an additional $435 million in federal COVID-relief funding to TRS for ActiveCare. (The TRS specifically confirmed that the $435 million is in addition to the previously appropriated $268 million.)

As per 2021’s SB1444, the board set the new ActiveCare rates, for the first time, based on a regional basis — specifically rates tied to the state’s 20 regional education service centers. Regions will see, on average, decreases ranging from 1 to 20 percent. TRS officials said there would be minimal plan changes to ActiveCare benefits (see graphic below).

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HMO Plans
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The TRS also set premiums and rates for the three HMO ActiveCare plans operating in limited areas of the state (see map).

There will be no changes to the BCBS West TX and BCBS South TX ActiveCare HMO plans, while premium increases and benefit changes were approved for the Baylor Scott & White ActiveCare HMO.

Data released by TRS in February reflected that about 982 of the 1,237 (79 percent) of public school employers will offer ActiveCare plans to their employees as of the upcoming plan year, a net decrease of 111 districts from the number of ActiveCare employers for the current plan year (see TEN, Feb. 7). Employers offering ActiveCare for the next plan year are listed here.

There is no change in the requirement that school districts must contribute at least $150 per employee monthly for health insurance, in addition to the $75 per employee contributed monthly by the state.