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EBC Chairman Bryce Fair is Associate Vice Chancellor for Scholarships and Grants with the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. He has served on the Council since 1993 and is appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma Senate.
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Dear State Employee:
Our state’s difficult economic situation continued in 2010 and is still with us today. However, the benefits offered to state employees and their families remain strong and experienced a number of positive developments in the past year.
- As a result of intensive negotiations and careful assessments of benefit levels, the increases in overall average health insurance premiums for health maintenance organizations were significantly lower than the national average.
- Your benefits office collaborated with the Office of Personnel Management and Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System to create a Total Compensation Survey. The survey coincided with the individualized Total Compensation Statements, which were distributed to all state employees in April. The survey, taken electronically through EBC’s Benefits Administration System and through paper submissions, was requested by Governor Brad Henry as a way to determine the perceived value of the benefits package. To the question “How important is the benefits package in your decision to work for the State?,” 92 percent of respondents indicated it is either important or very important.
- In 2010, Congress passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. The reform measures combined are known, simply, as the Affordable Care Act. The legislation brought some early, popular provisions to the benefits package. State employees can now have healthcare coverage for eligible children up to age 26. In addition, state employees and their families can get more preventive medical services at no out-of-pocket cost.
- Online enrollment continued its winning streak, breaking its record yet again. In October 2010, 78 percent of all state employees used the convenient process to analyze and select their benefits. Online enrollment helps employees choose the benefit options that best fit their individual situation.
The Employees Benefits Council (EBC) is proud of these accomplishments. Balancing benefit levels, cost and choice isn’t easy. Nevertheless, we remain dedicated to providing state employees and their families with quality and affordable benefits choices.
I encourage you to keep up with EBC news and activities via our web site, www.ebc.ok.gov, and our quarterly “Benefits Buzz” newsletter. If you have questions, concerns or comments, please contact EBC by phone at (405) 232-1190, toll free at (800) 219-8115, or email us. Email addresses are available on our Contact Us page of the main menu at the top of your screen.
Sincerely,
Bryce L. Fair
Chairman