“If you build it they will come.” Robert Payne, President of Local 526, thought those words to himself when he ventured to take problematic rising health care costs into his own hands. 


In late 2008, Payne was looking to gain some control over his local’s burgeoning health care costs to benefit his members when his broker Will Montoya told him of a company called WeCare that specializes in exactly that. WeCare helps mostly companies, but in this case Local 526, maintain wellness centers built at the workplace. WeCare Centers help to reduce health care costs, increase worker productivity, and provide quality and attentive health care for members – benefits that regular doctors and clinics rarely offer these days. In the fall of 2008, Payne, with the support of the Executive Board, presented the Wellness Center idea to Local 526 members and the company, the Local’s lawyers and the Department of Labor, and “got everyone’s blessing.” By January 2009 the Center was built inside the Local’s Union Hall, located just off work grounds.


“We didn’t have any data saying this would do what we thought it would do, but I felt very strongly that it would be successful,” said Payne. And it is, as the center is operating under budget. “We can run the entire clinic 28 hours a week for one year for less than one month’s insurance premium,” said Payne.


Local 526, located in St. Mary’s, Georgia, represents a wide range of workers that play a vital role in national security at the Kings Bay Naval Base, homeport to the United States Navy’s nuclear submarine fleet, the Trident. The base is understandably a highly secured area and covers 16,000 acres. Until the Center opened, a trip to the doctor for Local 526 members could cost the patient and the company anywhere from two to four hours of work and pay. 


Today, members who work for V.T. Griffin, the Local’s largest contractor, can get health care on their lunch break, plus the Center has lowered their medical costs, as well as those of the Local, the company and Blue Cross Blue Shield, their insurance provider. In August, Blue Cross actually gave the Local a 4.4 percent reduction on their premium. “This is unheard of in the industry right now where medical inflation rates are running up to nine percent,” said Payne.


The center operates Monday through Friday, and every other Saturday, and offers free primary, pediatric, women’s and preventative health care for those covered and their families. Through the Local’s broker, WeCare pays the doctor and nurses a flat rate so billing is simple for the doctor and the Local. The Local saves further because the medical staff never orders unnecessary testing and works closely with specialists when patients require outside care. Because the medical staff only serves about 70% of the small Local’s 400 members (members are not required to use the Center, but most do) they have the time to form relationships and to thoroughly care for every patient. All medical records are stored electronically, which saves space and ensures that the union does not have access to members’ personal information.


Payne hopes that his center can become a model for other TWU locals and unions around the country. In addition to the health and cost-saving benefits, local Wellness Centers can also be used as bargaining tools. Because you can save your company money, “maybe you could get other things by freeing up that money – put it somewhere else in the form of pay raises or pension benefits, guarantees, or other things,” explains Payne. 


Another perk the Local’s Center offers is that if the reductions offered by BCBS continue, the Local may one day soon be able to offer a plan where members get $200 a month back in pocket. “The union is going to give their own members a raise,” said Payne. 


They built it, members are coming, and now so have the savings.