Beginning with the 2018 plan year the Union recognizes that the Employer shall have the right during the effective life of this agreement to make annual design and cost sharing changes to the Bellevue Health Plans to promote cost containment if the cost of the city medical plan options offered to bargaining unit members is anticipated to exceed federal excise tax limits as outlined in the Affordable Care Act, effective January 1, 2018. Such changes shall be made uniformly for all non-represented City employees, their dependents, and non-LEOFF employee groups evenly. During the effective life of this Agreement, in the event that an arbitration award grants a bargaining unit the option of going to a non-City sponsored health care plan, either the City and/or the Union may reopen this article to explore available options. The Employer and the Union agree that the status quo maximum premium rates for City medical plan options offered to members of the bargaining unit shall not exceed the current Federal Excise (Cadillac) Tax limits of $10,200 per employee per year and $27,500 per family per year (as well as other benefit tiers, respectively) as outlined in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act effective January 1, 2018, or as amended. To that end, for the plan year commencing January 1, 2018, and every year for the effective life of this agreement, the City shall be allowed to implement plan design and/or vendor changes and/or contract for the provision of medical insurance and/or no longer be self-insured in order to limit plan offering cost to the annual individual and family caps as defined by the ACA (other plan tiers will be adjusted accordingly based on actuarial projections with these caps in mind). The City shall meet and confer with the Union prior to implementing any plan design, vendor, and/or self-insured changes for each year such changes may be necessary to avoid paying any federal excise tax. Should the City elect to make changes to the Bellevue Health Plans, the Union has the right to negotiate any impacts of such changes within thirty (30) days after any such changes take effect. If the provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act change in anyway after the ratification of this agreement by both parties, either party may request to meet and bargain the impacts of such changes as it relates to Article 16 of the collective bargaining agreement
