NEW CITY – Health insurance premiums for Rockland County employees have been lowered significantly, saving millions of taxpayer dollars in 2009, County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef announced.

Rockland taxpayers will see savings of up to $2.5 million next year because of reduced health insurance rates, Vanderhoef said. The savings comes from years of overcharges totaling more than $540 million by the New York State Health Insurance Plan, or NYSHIP, the statewide Empire Insurance Plan.

Vanderhoef wrote to Governor David Paterson in November to request that the money be returned to Rockland and counties across New York State.

“In these extremely tough fiscal times, our governments need to take the $540 million back immediately, instead of permitting the insurance companies to retain it and apply it to future premiums,” Vanderhoef wrote in his Nov. 24, 2008 letter.

An additional $4 million to $5 million may also be returned to Rockland County taxpayers because of overcharges in reserve accounts, Vanderhoef said, saying that he would write to the Governor again this month to request the additional refund. There are no changes in benefits to County employees because of the reduction in premiums.