The Great Plains Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church "Special Edition - Health benefits ballot announcement" for Monday, 20 October 2014

The Great Plains Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church "Special Edition - Health benefits ballot announcement" for Monday, 20 October 2014

Special Edition Annual Conference ballot announcement                                                                                                                                    Dear friends, I have reviewed the tally of the votes cast by clergy and lay members of the Annual Conference. An overwhelming majority approved the use of the mail/email ballot instead of asking me for a special session. The vote was also overwhelming to approve the recommendation of the Connecting Council that we end our Conference health plan for clergy appointed to local churches and enrolled lay staff. (Remember that employees of the Conference and clergy appointed to our largest church will continue to be covered by their employers.) The results of the ballot are as follows: Do you approve the use of this mail ballot? 1149 Yes                                                             59 No Do you approve the Connecting Council recommendation to end our Conference health insurance plan to pastors appointed to the local churches and enrolled lay employees of local churches? 1066 Yes                                                             158 No Thus, there will be no special session of the Annual Conference on Oct. 25. And therefore, our Conference health plan will no longer be in effect on Jan. 1, 2015. To help clergy and local church leaders in this transition, we have prepared a resource called “Guidelines and Instructions for Great Plains Clergy Health Insurance” which can be found atwww.GreatPlainsUMC.org/HealthInsurance. This web page will supply information on how to complete clergy compensation forms as well as all the background leading up to the vote. The Frequently Asked Questions document is updated regularly. This has been a difficult and complex decision, but I am proud of our Pensions and Health Benefits Team, the Conference staff, the Cabinet and all of us for the way we have carefully considered our options and taken a clear and timely decision. Grace and peace, Scott J. Jones

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