Position Statement: Stabilizing PEIA for Educators and Public Employees

PEIA is one of the most serious issues facing West Virginia’s educators and public employees today. Over the last three years, employees have absorbed nearly a 50 percent increase in costs, with yet another increase scheduled for the 2026–2027 plan year. These repeated hikes have placed an enormous strain on working families and retirees and have created constant uncertainty for the people who serve our state.

After the 2018 public employee strike, a PEIA task force was created to study the problem and recommend long‑term solutions. Those recommendations were never fully implemented. Instead, the state has relied on short‑term fixes and one‑time funding, leaving employees to face year‑to‑year instability. This ongoing uncertainty is a major factor in West Virginia’s growing difficulty retaining and recruiting educators and school employees.

I stand with Education West Virginia in calling for long‑term stability and fairness in PEIA. I support legislation that would establish a clear and predictable cost‑sharing structure requiring the state to pay no less than 80 percent of PEIA costs, with employees paying no more than 20 percent. Any savings achieved within the plan should be used to reduce the employee share, not shifted elsewhere. This approach would bring stability to the plan and restore confidence for its participants.

I also support reforming the spousal surcharge so that it is based on premium tiers rather than a flat dollar amount. Lower‑paid employees should not be paying the same surcharge as those earning significantly higher salaries. Aligning the surcharge with ability to pay is a matter of fairness and consistency.

Stabilizing PEIA is not just a health insurance issue—it is a workforce issue. If we want to attract and keep qualified educators and public employees, we must provide a benefits system that is predictable, fair, and sustainable. I am committed to pushing for responsible reforms that bring long‑term stability to PEIA and show respect for the people who serve West Virginia every day.

Supporting public education and its educators is about fairness, respect, and responsibility. I will always stand with West Virginia’s educators, and support staff fighting to ensure they are adequately compensated and can retire with the security and dignity they deserve.

Thanks for your time,

Rob Vincent

“Honest work, Real solutions, A Better West Virginia”