The Imperial County Board of Supervisors approved changes to the county's 2026 health benefits program on Oct. 7, including premium increases, vendor changes and a shift in the Medicare Advantage plan, while moving to validate and cover a disputed charge for a subset of retirees.

County Human Resources Director Erica Morales presented the staff recommendation to adopt plan-year 2026 premium changes, move pharmacy administration and some digital-care vendors effective Jan. 1, 2026, and authorize the county executive officer to implement the changes. Morales told the board the county's self-funded Prism Health arrangement covers 5,203 members and that proposed adjustments aim to sustain the program after large renewals in 2025.

The changes include a recommended aggregate 13.1% increase for active employee medical costs (staff recommended the county absorb that increase based on existing Memoranda of Understanding) and a 12.1% aggregate increase affecting retiree plans. Morales said the county's recommendation would apply the 12.1% increase to retirees' monthly portions and noted retiree plan tiers determine how much the county covers for each retiree.

At the meeting David Prince, president of the Imperial County Association of Retired Employees and a member of the health insurance committee, urged the board to pick up the 12% increase for the roughly 330 retirees who currently pay a portion of premiums. Prince said the county's health trust balance had been reduced by prior funding and that the incremental cost to cover those retirees would be about $105,000. "These 330 members that are already paying a portion of their premiums are gonna have to pick up to 12%," Prince said during public comment.

Supervisor Ryan Kelly moved that the board approve making the allocation for the tier-2 retirees contingent on validation of the numbers through GSA and the executive office; Supervisor Peggy Price seconded the motion. The motion carried.

Separately, the board accepted staff's recommendation to transition the Medicare Advantage program for retirees 65 and older from UnitedHealthcare to Anthem effective Jan. 1, 2026, after Alliant (the county's broker) negotiated improved actuarial terms. Staff said moving to Anthem would lower the projected renewal rate to roughly flat overall compared with a large increase from UnitedHealthcare.

The board also authorized routine vendor renewals and administrative-fee adjustments: a no-rate increase for Benefit Coordinators Corporation (flexible spending/HRAs), a 5% administrative-fee increase for Pinnacle (county cross-border claims management), no increase for the Dental HMO administrative fee, and a 3.8% administrative increase for the Principal dental PPO administration.

Board members and the retiree representative highlighted two practical concerns: (1) how the county would draw from the health trust fund and other sources to make near-term payments and (2) the equity principle of treating the tier-2 retirees the same as actives and tier-1 retirees. Morales said the projected county contribution for active and retiree plans for 2026 would be up to $5.5 million and that those amounts are included in internal service fund budgets; she said remaining details on exact funding sources would be validated with budget staff.

The board's actions approve the vendor and plan changes and establish a process to validate and finalize the county's allocation for the affected tier-2 retirees. Staff said any mid-year adjustments tied to future MOUs could be processed if bargaining units ratify agreements after Jan. 1, 2026. The board did not adopt any changes that would take effect without the administrative steps described by Human Resources and budget staff.

Notes: The motions were passed after public comment and board discussion; the meeting transcript records the motions and "Motion carries" but does not include a roll-call tally in the public record excerpt.