How Government Adds To Ranks of Uninsured / Many Outsourced Federal Jobs Don't Offer Health Insurance; Using Cash Allowance for Rent
Source: By JANE ZHANG, Wall Street Journal (subscription req.), March 25, 2008
....... Covering the uninsured is a central issue in this year's political campaign. Yet while politicians debate how best to cover the growing ranks of the uninsured, the federal government -- by outsourcing service jobs -- quietly is adding to those numbers.
"As federal employees, we get great insurance," says Dr. Rogers, a physician who believes prompt treatment might have staved off Ms. Derricotte's disability. "People who work as contractors often don't enjoy those benefits."
Federal contract employees, including cafeteria workers, security guards and cleaning crews, work on Capitol Hill and in federal agencies across the country.
Under a 1965 law, called the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act, most contractors with service contracts of more than $2,500 are required to pay locally prevailing wages, plus fringe benefits or the cash equivalent -- $3.16 an hour this year, under a government formula.
Yet some contract employees don't get either the health insurance or the extra cash.