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County board approves 2026 employee health plan renewals; lifts employee premium by $5
Summary
The Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 15 approved staff recommendations for the 2026 employee benefits package, renewed PacificSource as the third‑party administrator for one year and approved administrative stop‑loss coverage. The board also approved a $5 monthly premium increase for employee tiers.
Deschutes County commissioners voted Oct. 15 to adopt staff recommendations for the county’s 2026 employee benefits plan, including renewing the third‑party administrator contract with PacificSource for one more year, maintaining a $500,000 stop‑loss deductible and approving benefit plan language updates required by state law.
Human Resources analyst Trigvie (Trigiv) Balkan and HR Director Susan DeJody presented the annual benefits renewal package on behalf of the county’s Employee Benefits Advisory Committee (EBAC). Staff said medical and prescription claims rose about 9.6% during the first seven months of 2025 and that the county’s self‑insured fund balance was approximately $11.8 million at the end of June 2025 (about $3.8 million above the fund policy minimum of $8 million).
The EBAC recommended modest employee cost‑share changes. After discussion the board amended staff’s recommendation and approved a $5 monthly increase to employee premium contributions (employee only and dependent tiers), rather than a $1 or 1% increase the advisory committee had recommended. County staff estimated the $5 increase would generate roughly $77,000 in additional annual plan revenue; a 5% premium increase would have yielded an estimated $86,000. The $5 increase takes effect for the 2026 plan year and will be reflected in open enrollment materials.
Other changes approved by the board included state‑required coverage updates for maternity services (doula coverage), expanded coverage for certain prosthetic devices, coverage of autologous breast reconstruction as in‑network, and adjustments to dependent care flexible spending account limits (in line with federal changes increasing the cap). The board also authorized the county administrator to sign final plan documents and vendor service agreements.
Commissioners and staff acknowledged recent years of large increases in claims and department charges; staff said the county has increased department charges in prior years to rebuild the fund balance and that the 2026 package is intended to be fiscally prudent while preserving benefits. The board approved vendor renewals and plan language updates and directed staff to prepare contract signature documents.
What's next: County staff will finalize vendor agreements and produce open‑enrollment materials for employees for the January 2026 plan year. The county intends to issue an RFP for a TPA in 2026 for the 2027 plan year.
