Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a bill Friday that would have allowed UF to self-insure all of its employees.
House Bill 5009 would have created GatorCare, a standardized health insurance plan for all benefits-eligible employees and their families, including those outside of Gainesville.
“We’re disappointed, because I think it might have been a benefit to the faculty,” said Faculty Senate Chairman Scott Nygren.
The proposed plan would have improved workers’ health and been more cost-effective, according to a post by Paula Fussell, Human Resource Services vice president, on UF’s health care website.
In his veto letter, Scott said he was concerned the financial impacts had not been fully considered.
“I commend the University of Florida for seeking methods to be cost-efficient,” Scott said. “However, I must balance the financial interests of the university against the financial interests of the other universities and state agencies participating in the state employee health insurance program.”
Nygren said UF will continue to work toward implementing GatorCare in a limited way. Some 16,000 employees — including Gainesville and Jacksonville Shands employees, graduate assistants and post-doctoral associates — are not affected by the veto.
“We’ll continue to argue for its implementation in the future,” he said.
Contact Julia Glum at jglum@alligator.org
