PETITION TO THE CITY OF DALLAS REGARDING 2027 HEALTH INSURANCE CHANGES

To the City Manager, Dallas City Council, and all City of Dallas officials involved in determining employee and retiree health benefits:

We, the undersigned City of Dallas active employees, retirees, spouses, family members, and other concerned individuals, are requesting answers and transparency regarding the significant changes proposed for City of Dallas health insurance coverage for 2027.

The City has announced that the current PPO option will no longer be available. The HSA high-deductible health plan is moving to the Blue Essentials network and will include salary-based contribution tiers. The PCP plan will remain and also utilizes the Blue Essentials network.

These changes raise serious questions about access to medical care for active employees, their families, retirees, and their families.

Many employees and retirees made long-term career and retirement decisions with the understanding that health insurance benefits were part of their compensation and retirement benefits. Retirees, in particular, may have made decisions about where to live based upon the health coverage available to them after completing their service to the City of Dallas.

Before employees and retirees are asked to enroll in 2027 coverage, we are requesting clear, written answers to the following questions:

Will there be adequate access to primary care physicians?
If thousands of City of Dallas employees, retirees, spouses, and dependents are moved into the Blue Essentials network, has the City determined whether there are enough participating primary care physicians accepting new patients?
Will there be adequate access to specialists?
Has the City evaluated access to cardiologists, oncologists, endocrinologists, rheumatologists, neurologists, OB/GYNs, orthopedic physicians, mental health providers, and other specialists throughout the areas where City employees and retirees live?
What happens to individuals who live outside the Blue Essentials service area?
Previous City materials have stated that participants must live within the Blue Essentials network/service area. How will the proposed plans provide routine medical care for eligible employees, retirees, spouses, and dependents who do not live within that area?
What happens to City of Dallas retirees who permanently live outside Texas?
Some retirees completed decades of service to the City of Dallas and subsequently moved to other states. What coverage will be available to them for routine primary and specialty care—not simply emergency care?
What happens to families whose dependents live outside the service area?
How will coverage work for spouses, college students, dependent children, or other eligible family members who reside outside the Blue Essentials service area?
What happens when someone is traveling?
What medical coverage will employees, retirees, and their families have while traveling outside the Blue Essentials service area? What is covered for emergency care, urgent care, and necessary non-emergency medical care?
Has the City conducted a network adequacy analysis?
Before selecting these plans, did the City determine whether the Blue Essentials network has sufficient numbers and types of providers in the geographic areas where City employees and retirees actually live?
Has the City studied where its retirees live?
If retirees are spread throughout Texas and across the United States, how was that information considered when selecting a geographically restricted provider network?
What happens to established physician-patient relationships?
Employees, retirees, and family members may have longstanding relationships with physicians and specialists who are not participating in Blue Essentials. What provisions, if any, are being made for continuity of care? What will be done for individuals with special needs, serious health issues, who require immediate continuation of care without time for a new PCP or specialist?
What meaningful option exists for someone who cannot reasonably access Blue Essentials providers?
If an employee or retiree lives in an area without adequate participating physicians or specialists, what alternative City-sponsored coverage will be available?
What We Are Asking the City of Dallas to Do

We are asking the City of Dallas to provide clear, written, and publicly available answers to these questions before employees and retirees are required to make enrollment decisions for 2027.

We further request that the City demonstrate that the proposed health plans provide reasonable access to primary care, specialty care, hospital care, and other medically necessary services for active employees, retirees, and their eligible family members—regardless of whether they currently live in Dallas, elsewhere in Texas, or outside the state.

Until the City can demonstrate that the Blue Essentials network provides adequate and reasonable access to primary care, specialty care, hospitals, and other medically necessary services for all eligible participants, we specifically request that the City retain a PPO or other broad-network health insurance option for retirees and other eligible participants who live outside the Blue Essentials service area or who otherwise cannot reasonably access care through the Blue Essentials network.

This is not simply a question about premiums, deductibles, or plan names.

It is a question of whether the health insurance being offered can actually be used by the people it is intended to cover.

City of Dallas employees and retirees deserve complete information before being asked to make decisions that could significantly affect their health, their families, and their access to medical care.

We respectfully request transparency, answers, and meaningful action from City leadership before these changes take effect.