Will Gueydan schools close if Vermilion Parish School Board does not get control of health insurance spending

After a second insurance committee meeting in seven days did not figure out a way to fix the problem of having to borrow money from the general fund, in order to pay health insurance bills, the talk quickly shifted to possibly closing schools and rezoning as a way to save the school system money.
Heck, at one point towards the end of the meeting, one school board member walked out.
School Board member Stacy Landry, who sits on the school insurance committee, was upset with what he was hearing during Monday night’s school insurance committee meeting that he walked out before the meeting was over. Before he left, he spoke.
“I have been on this board for five years,” said Landry. “My number one concern has always been the children in Vermilion Parish. I am very disgusted and disappointed in the way the board is acting and the way the employees are acting, as well. We have a serious, serious problem with our health insurance. Until the board can get along, start working together and find some answers, we are not going to get anywhere. I’m walking out.”
School Board member Chris Gautreaux informed the insurance committee and members in the audience that the school system is in a financial crisis because of the health insurance situation.
“We have a serious problem, and we are about to have another problem because- we are fixing to rezone in this parish,” Gautreaux said. “My area, the North Vermilion area, will take the biggest hit.
“Another thing that is fixing to happen, and I am going to push for it, is close the schools in Gueydan,” Gautreaux said. “We can save a lot of money by doing that. If we do not get this health insurance in order, I will push for that. I can get five votes to close schools. That is an option we have.”
The problem the school board is facing is that it is losing an average of $200,000 a month because of high cost insurance health claims the last three months. The school board is self insured up to $175,000 per claim. So, if there is a $100,000 health claim, the school board has to pay the bills. Anything higher than $175,000, the school board has a special insurance to cover that cost.
The school board collects a total of $1.2 million in insurance claims a month to help pay insurance bills. But what is happening is that the school board is being hit with health claims that total $1.5 million each month. With premiums only bringing in $1.2 million, the school board is having to dip into its insurance fund account to pay bills. That account is shrinking. When that is gone, the school board is going to have to take out of the general fund, which has just over $12 million in it.
The school board tried to fix the problem by adopting a new insurance plan that meant raising the insurance premiums to help bring in more money. But it died when the school board voted 4-4.
Now the school board has to find another way to fix the health insurance problem before it drains the general fund account.
School Board member Anthony Fontana resigned as the chairman of the insurance committee after the 4-4 vote. School Board member Sara Duplechain is the new chairman.
North Vermilion Middle School Principal Joan Romero, who sits on the school insurance committee, is well aware of the financial situation the health insurance plan is about to cost the school board over the next year. Romero wanted to know what is the plan to prevent the health insurance from draining the general fund?
“What are we going to do? Are we staying with the same (insurance coverage as this year)?” Romero asked Duplechain.
“Yes,” said Duplechain.
Romero replied, “Where is the money coming from that we are about to lose?”
“General fund,” said Duplechain.
“What money is going to replace that money?” asked Romero.
“That is a great question,” Duplechain replied.
“Fontana followed, “There is none.”
Romero continued, “When our salaries are going to be cut, your retirements are going to be cut. I hope our employees realize that. We are going to be in a bind. We need to get this under control.”
Fontana said the choices will be to close schools, reduce class room size or across the board pay cut to avoid depleting the general fund account. He added there was a plan in place last week that would raise insurance premiums to help pay for the high claims but it was shot down by four school board members (Duplechain, Kibbie Pillette, Luddy Herpin and Laura LeBeouf).
“This is not a pleasant thing. We can’t keep going down this road,” Fontana said.