I have spent some time thinking about the proposal by Michigan House Speaker Andy Dillon to overhaul health care for public employees, including teachers. There are very few times that I agree with a democratic initiative that comes out of the State House or Senate but this one has merit. I applaud Representative Dillon for being willing to buck the teacher and state public employee unions in trying to do what is right for the state. At one time our teachers were underpaid and overworked. They are now decently compensated and still overworked. We have come to the point though that we can no longer give a benefit package to our teachers and state employees that the private sector for the most part does not enjoy. There are very few private pension plans any longer and the 401(k) or 403(b) retirement plans does not come close to the public sector in the benefits provided through their retirement package. If we can package all of our health care together, there would be immediate savings to the bottom line of the state budget. I don’t doubt that the health care provided under a state collective would still exceed the benefits of most private business plans. Our state income will surely remain flat or decrease for the foreseeable future and the Federal stimulus money is only temporarily halting the inevitable. Draconian cuts will have to occur in fiscal year 2011 within our state budget. If we can have a state health care plan for all public employees, save tens of millions of dollars and provide essentially the same coverage, this is the win-win for all taxpayers. The only losers are those unions and organizations who have used the existing health care structure as a cash cow for way to long.