TZG Secures Funding for Regional Health Insurance Funds
In this year’s budget process, TZG’s Beth Dohm and Chris Hughes secured a $1 million line-item appropriation in the State Fiscal Year 2025 Budget for Joint Health Insurance Funds. These Funds offer public entities a cost-effective source for providing quality health benefits to their employees. The funding was for costs HIFs incurred associated with COVID-19 Surveillance Testing during the 2021 and 2022 school years.
On behalf of the HIFs, TZG developed and executed a legislative budget strategy and worked with the HIFs to develop salient messaging that would resonate and garner support for this budget request. At the outset, TZG identified legislators who would introduce budget resolutions in both the Senate and Assembly and help champion the cause throughout the legislative budget process.
TZG arranged and led meetings with legislative bill sponsors, members of the Budget and Appropriations Committees and reached out to legislative leaders in both houses to secure their support. TZG also engaged with the Governor’s Office which included representatives from Governor’s Counsel, Governor’s Policy Office as well as officials from the Department of the Treasury.
Throughout the budget process, TZG spoke with decision makers about the costs of surveillance testing which were inadvertently sent to insurance, and were not the liability of the HIFs.
The meetings with legislators and administration officials also provided an opportunity to further explain how HIFs typically operate and the cost savings that HIFs have generated to local municipalities, school districts and to local taxpayers.
Soon after the FY 2025 State Appropriations Act was signed and enacted on July 1st, TZG turned its focus on next steps necessary to ensure the appropriate implementation of this budget appropriation. TZG reached out to the Department of Education, the agency responsible for allocating the funds, and helped to secure a grant agreement that ensures the funds will be easily accessible to the HIFs when the funding becomes available.
