The Manor City Council approved a temporary one-month renewal with UnitedHealthcare (UHC) and authorized switching the city’s medical benefits to Blue Cross Blue Shield effective Oct. 1, 2025.

Tracy Vasquez, Manor’s human resources director, introduced a recommendation from HUB International after a year-long procurement. HUB consultant Brett Bowers told the council that catastrophic claims during the plan year produced a high loss ratio for the city and that UHC’s renewal offer would have been a 17.9% increase after negotiation. A competitive RFP produced a Blue Cross Blue Shield final that the consultant said would be roughly a 6% increase and included a negotiated cap of 14.5% on next year’s renewal as a backstop.

Why it matters: The change affects the city’s budget and employee out-of-pocket costs. Staff said the city will keep the current employer contribution strategy — the city pays 100% of employee-only coverage and employees pay for dependents. The switch will require a brief one-month extension on the UHC plan (Sept. 1–Oct. 1) to allow an Oct. 1 plan-year alignment with the city’s fiscal year.

Details: Bowers said the city experienced a single paid catastrophic claim of about $600,000 that skewed the renewal. He said Blue Cross Blue Shield’s proposal included a rate cap and that the city had negotiated other accommodations, such as earlier implementation of an online enrollment/eligibility platform. He warned the carriers’ provider networks largely overlap and most members would not need to switch hospital systems, though some specialists or pharmacies might be affected. Council discussed deductibles, family out-of-pocket maximums and the tech-credit that had been negotiated previously for enrollment tools.

Council action: Councilman Wallace moved that council approve UHC’s increased plan for one month (September 2025) and then switch to Blue Cross Blue Shield effective Oct. 1, 2025, as presented by HUB International. The motion passed.

Next steps: HR will implement open enrollment and the online eligibility system and begin the Oct. 1 transition. Staff said benefit materials and enrollment guides will be distributed so employees do not experience a coverage gap.