Denominational Health Plan
The Episcopal Church’s Denominational Health Plan (DHP) is helping domestic dioceses, parishes and other ecclesiastical institutions subject to the authority of the Church control the rising costs of health care. View the 2016 DHP Annual Report (available in English and Español).
2016 Denominational Health Plan Annual Report
The 2016 Annual Report, published pursuant to General Convention Resolution 2012-B026, summarizes more recent developments with the DHP.
In 2016 we advanced a number of key DHP initiatives, including:
- Maintaining robust participation in the DHP, with approximately 95% of all eligible clergy and lay employees participating in a Medical Trust plan or obtaining healthcare coverage through other approved sources.
- Delivering cost containment that continues to be passed on to the Church; since 2009, most dioceses have received annual rate reductions or low single-digit annual increases.
- Ongoing support of dioceses in determining the most optimal array of plans to meet the needs of their groups.
- Maintaining a strong financial position with rates that are competitive in most markets.
- Continuing to advance the issue of parity.
- Remaining compliant with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by implementing required tax reporting and plan design changes, while continuing to assess and plan for solutions should the “Cadillac Tax” be implemented in 2020.
- Absorbing $626,000 in required ACA fees rather than passing these fees along to participating dioceses and institutions.
2017 Outlook
The future of the ACA is uncertain following the 2016 election results. President Donald J. Trump and congressional leadership have indicated repealing and replacing the law is a top priority. The ACA also faces instability in the state exchanges due to high premium increases and lower participation than expected. While it is too early to tell what will ultimately happen, the ACA is likely to undergo significant changes over the next few years. The Medical Trust will continue to monitor these developments and how the DHP is impacted.
We estimate that Medical Trust rates in 2017 will be more competitive than the local exchanges in 90% of the groups we cover. With respect to the remaining groups, we expect Medical Trust rates to be no more than 10% above the average local exchange rate. We will continue to explore additional opportunities to provide greater equity in healthcare contribution costs without materially impacting the competitiveness of the DHP at local and regional levels.
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Health benefits are offered through plans maintained by Church Pension Group Services Corporation (doing business as The Episcopal Church Medical Trust), 19 East 34th Street, New York, NY 10016.