ELCA Council Updated on Renewing Worship, Health Plan Redesign

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) received an update on the church's project to develop the "next generation of worship resources," and it approved changes to the ELCA medical and dental benefits plan.
The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between churchwide assemblies. The council met here April 17-18. Assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 8-14, 2005, in Orlando, Fla.
The Rev. Michael L. Burk, director for worship, ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries, reported that the church's "Renewing Worship" project has developed "Holy Communion and Related Rites," the sixth volume in the series of provisional resources.
The provisional volume is available on the project's Web site -- http://www.renewingworship.org/ -- with the copyright condition that the downloaded version can only be used through Dec. 31, 2005. Burk told the council a complimentary copy of "Renewing Worship Liturgies" -- a "pew edition" that contains congregational versions of the services in "Holy Communion and Related Rites" -- will be sent to each ELCA congregation.
A 45-minute video, "Renewing Worship: Join the Conversation," is available, Burk said. The video is a symbol of the participatory nature of the whole project, he said.
A report and recommendations related to Renewing Worship are anticipated for the 2005 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. Burk said he hopes to provide a report, available resources and the table of contents for a new primary book of worship with recommended hymn list.

ELCA Health Plan Redesign
The council approved "in concept" the Health Plan Redesign that the ELCA Board of Pensions has undertaken in its 2003-2005 strategic plan.
The redesign is one of the strategic plan's initiatives, John G. Kapanke, president, ELCA Board of Pensions, Minneapolis, said in his written report to the council. It is meant "to align our plan design more closely with our health and wellness initiatives and to achieve specific cost-sharing targets for pharmacy, medical and dental benefits."
"Implementation of the redesigned plan began last year with increased pharmacy co-payments that achieve the goal of the plan paying 75 percent of pharmacy costs and members paying 25 percent. The next stage is an expansion of the plan's wellness benefits effective January 1, 2005, and achieving our goal that the plan pay 65 percent of dental costs and members pay 35 percent," Kapanke wrote.
"We estimate that the wellness benefit changes proposed for January 1, 2005, will increase plan costs by roughly one percent. The 2006 changes are expected to reduce plan costs by four to five percent as additional costs are paid by the members," said Kapanke's report.
"In the long term, these changes -- coupled with our efforts to promote healthy behavior and disease management -- should help to control future health costs, thereby helping to keep down future contribution rate increases," Kapanke concluded.
In other business, the council elected the Rev. Kathleen O. Reed, Christ Lutheran Church, Natick, Mass., to the board of trustees of the ELCA Board of Pensions. She will complete the term, which expires in 2009, of Marcia B. Strahl, Chadwick, Ill.
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The Web site of the ELCA Board of Pensions is at http://www.elcabop.org/ on the Internet.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news