As the conversations continue, the University will be better able to respond to the diversity of employee needs, Groty said. We'll look at ways to make our program work as efficiently as possible. It's a very long, deliberative process. To put this into perspective, the MSU News Bulletin asked Keith Groty, assistant vice president for human resources, to discuss the issue. Benefits constitute about 21 percent of the total compensation package for faculty and staff.
Medical inflation is a major component.
The cost of medical care has been increasing more than 2.5 times the general consumer price index. The aging workforce is also a major contributor. Utilization of health care increases significantly with age. As the average age of the workforce increases and the number of retirees increase, the use of the health care system also increases. Many things have contributed to the skyrocketing cost of medical care.