Commissioners argue over insurance deductibles

Rising insurance premiums prompted a conversation between the county commissioners this week about whether the deductible should be increased for the employees’ health insurance.
They had the same discussion last year — and at that time agreed to move the long-time deductible from $250 to $500. This week, the suggestions ranged from increasing it to $750 and all the way to $1,500.
“We recently received notice of our premium increase, which will be 8.46 percent,” Commissioner Gus Brown said. “That’s staying at a $500 deductible, with no change in coverage. We will need to start taking the new premium out on June 2.”
“Even if we decide to do something different (regarding other companies, other than their current provider Blue Cross/Blue Shield), we’ll have to go with this until we find something different,” said Commissioner Ken Stuhr. “We may need to find an insurance broker to look at what’s out there.”
“We did a survey of other counties and have found that a number of them moved away from NACO (the Nebraska Association of County Officials, which is the bargaining agent for York County’s insurance),” Brown said. “We found that one of those counties then went back.”
“And when that county went back, there was a hefty surcharge,” commented York County Clerk Cynthia Heine.
“Some of the counties said it was a good first year, and then it got too expensive so they went right back to NACO,” commented Commissioner Bob Wolfe.
“Last year, the rate increase was between six and seven percent and the association brought it down some again, but we’re still looking at an increase,” Brown said.
“What we may need to look at is changing the deductible, to keep the cost down for the taxpayers,” said Wolfe.
There was some discussion as to whether the unions (in the departments where they apply) would have an issue with an increase in deductible — the board determined that the deductible is actually up to the county officials and the union would informed of any such increase.
“Have we heard any complaints about the current insurance?” asked Wolfe.
“I feel that it is good insurance, and they take care of claims very well,” Brown said. “It’s just the cost. And I don’t know if we can get any cheaper, either.”
In looking at the deductibles of other counties, those who responded said their deductibles are at $500 and higher.
“This will likely take some time, and we may need a broker to look at other alternatives,” Brown said. “We need to keep the insurance in force, so we would need to continue what we have. We only have to give a 30-day notice if we want to change, so we have some options.”
“I just don’t want to get a really low rate and then the next year, up it goes,” said Wolfe.
“We definitely don’t want to do anything until we have all the information,” Stuhr said, before making a motion to continue with the present plan “at this time.”
“But you didn’t say anything about staying with the same deductible or not,” Wolfe said.
“I think the deductible should go up,” said Commissioner Steve Neujahr. “I’d like to have some discussion about it, see if we can come up with a consensus. I’m looking at going to $1,000, maybe even $1,500 to get the monthly premiums down. The premium could go down from $514 to $467 a month. We could find cost savings there.”
“I agree, it sounds good, but if we go from $500 to $1,500, alot of union employees will be upset,” Wolfe said.
Again, the other commissioners looked into whether the county has the right to change the deductible without the union’s approval — they said they believed they had that right.
Stuhr, the county’s negotiator with the union, said he had “no problem with discussing this matter with them. The county’s benefits are really, very, very good.”
“I look at the employees’ side — we’re talking another $250 or another $500 for them, for their deductible, if they use the insurance,” Brown said.
“And with a spouse, that could double,” Heine interjected.
“I think if we are going to increase the deductible, we shouldn’t jump that far,” Brown said.
“I agree, I don’t want a bunch of unhappy employees,” Wolfe said. “All of a sudden, they’d be paying another $500 to $1,500 out of their pocket. And again, we’d have to negotiate with the union.”
“No, the county board needs to make the decision, we don’t want the union to dictate what the county board is doing,” Stuhr said.
“Maybe we should increase it in smaller steps,” Brown said.
Neujahr made a motion to raise the deductible to $1,000, which was seconded by Stuhr “for the sake of discussion.”
“This would be $35,000 savings to the county, going to a $1,000 deductible,” Neujahr said.
They also calculated that there would be $22,000 in savings if they went to a $750 deductible.
“When it comes to going to $1,000, I don’t want to take a big chunk like that,” said Commissioner Gene Bergen.
“I’m thinking of the employees,” Wolfe said. “We’re talking about all the employees — at the shop and in the courthouse. They’re getting hit hard, right now, with the price of gas and everything else.”
Neujahr was the only commissioner to vote for the $1,000 deductible, so that motion failed.
Stuhr then made a motion to raise the deductible to $750, from the current $500. Neujahr seconded the motion, stating, “I am willing to compromise.”
“That’s the way to do it,” Wolfe said. “That’s why we get along.”
Everyone voted in favor of raising the deductible to $750 and stay with the current provider at this time. However, they said they still want to look into the offerings from other companies via an insurance broker, if possible.