Baltimore County employees will have to cover more of their health insurance costs starting in 2015.
The county's Health Care Review Committee, made up of labor representatives and others, has voted to approve a plan that phases in a 5 percent increase in employee contributions starting in 2015, county officials said Monday.
County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said the county needed to make the changes because of escalating health care costs, which take up about 10 percent of the county budget.
By 2017, employees in the preferred provider plan will contribute 25 percent to their insurance premiums, officials said. Those in the HMO plan will cover 15 percent of the costs by that year.
Employees also will pay more for prescription drugs. Co-pays for generic medications, for instance, will increase from $5 to $12.
More than 13,000 employees and retirees are eligible for the county's health coverage, officials said.
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