As Virginia Beach school leaders debate next year’s budget, a lawsuit over rising teacher healthcare premiums is set for trial Monday.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Virginia Beach City Public School Board met Tuesday night to discuss the budget for the upcoming school year, touching on several issues, including healthcare premiums for teachers and staff.
The discussion comes just days before a lawsuit against Superintendent Dr. Donald Robertson Jr. is scheduled to go to trial.
Attorney Tim Anderson, who represents he school employees, said while more than 100 teachers and staff initially filed the lawsuit last August, the case moving forward will focus on one person.
Monday’s trial in Virginia Beach General District Court centers on Stephanie Springer, a school security officer who said her health insurance premium increased by about $1,000 a year.
“We’re doing this major trial in the court system for $1,000,” Anderson said.
As Anderson explained, the money represents the additional healthcare fees she paid for the 2025-2026 school year.
“You know, this is just completely unfair to the workers who do the good work in the Virginia Beach City Public School system,” the attorney said.
School board members received what was referred to as a monthly update on potential healthcare plan costs for next year.
“Your health plan changes people’s lives,” said David Keogh, the senior benefits consultant at Mercer, as he presented employee contribution, employer contribution, and healthcare fund possibilities.
According to Anderson, the dispute stems from the school board’s efforts to attract employees by offering lower healthcare premiums, and those efforts were substantiated during the Tuesday night meeting.
“At the close of fiscal year 2022, the fund balance was nearly $40 million, almost twice our current recommended reserve level, and gross costs have steadily increased since that time. During that period, teacher recruitment and retention had reached what could be seen as a critical point,” said Crystal Pate, Chief Financial Officer for VBCPS. “In response, the administration at that time made the decision to substantially reduce employee contribution rates as part of a recruitment and retention strategy.”
“And it worked,” said Anderson. “A lot of teachers and other workers came to Virginia Beach because Virginia Beach offered this fantastic health insurance plan, and it was substantially cheaper than the other cities.”
However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Anderson said employee-paid premiums remained the same while claims increased. The additional costs were covered through the school system’s healthcare fund until that fund was depleted.
“However, as you are aware, claims experience changed significantly after that decision, resulting in an accelerated drawdown of the health fund and ultimately requiring us to reverse course,” Pate said.
“They all signed up to work and then all of a sudden, after everybody’s committed, they’re like, ‘Oh, by the way, your health insurance premium is going up 110%. Sorry for your luck,’” Anderson said.
A lower court previously ruled that 112 employees could not sue the superintendent anonymously, stalling the case in the Virginia Beach Circuit Court. Anderson believes pursuing the case with a single plaintiff creates another opportunity for those who fear retaliation.
“Once we win, we’re gonna give it as an option to every employee in the Virginia Beach City Public School system,” he said.
When the lawsuit was first filed in August, the school division told 13News Now that administrators were aware of the lawsuit, were seeking legal counsel, and do not comment on pending litigation.