SPEC Kit 320: Core Benefits · 17
Health Care Plans
Most of the responding institutions offer multiple health care plans. The most common plans are the Participating
Provider Option (PPO) and Health Maintenance Organization (HMO). A smaller number of institutions offer
Point-of-Service (POS) plans, an institutional plan, or Medicare fee-for-service. Some institutions also provide
high deductible versions of the PPO, HMO, and POS plans. Other health care options include Consumer Driven
Health Plans and Exclusive Provider Organization plans.
Type of Plan Offered Responses
Participating Provider Option (PPO) 38 73%
High Deductible PPO 14 39%
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) 27 52%
High Deductible HMO 6 23%
Point-of-Service (POS) 12 23%
High Deductible POS 2 20%
University/institutional health plan 5 10%
Medicare fee-for-service 4 8%
Other plan 15 29%
For the three most common plans (HMO, PPO, and POS), employers pay, on average, between 80% and 89%
of the premium for single coverage and between 76% and 85% for family coverage.
Employer Contributes
for
Single Coverage Family Coverage
Average Median Average Median
HMO 89% 90% 82% 83%
PPO 85% 87% 76% 80%
POS 80% 87% 85% 85%
There is significant variation among the out-of-pocket maximums for the three most common health care
plans. For single coverage, the maximum out-of-pocket exposure for the employee is, on average, much lower
for HMO plans. For family coverage, the HMO and POS plans have considerably lower maximum out-of-pocket
expense averages and medians than PPO plans.
Employee’s Maximum
Out-of-Pocket Expense
Single Coverage Family Coverage
Average Median Average Median
HMO $1,125 $1,100 $2,500 $3,000
POS $2,363 $2,200 $5,380 $4,000
PPO $3,042 $2,400 $3,042 $2,400
Weighted Average $2,363 $1,977 $3,215 $2,818
Benefits Orientation and Administration
The survey asked how the parent institution and the library orient new employees and disseminate informa-
tion to current employees regarding retirement and insurance benefits. Many of the respondents reported their
institutions have full or half-day orientation programs, some of which are mandatory for new hires. They also
include information in orientation materials provided to new hires or prospective employees during interviews.
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