Commissioners signal support to renew county�Anthem health plan amid a 15% proposed rate increase

Park County staff told the Board of County Commissioners during an administrative session on Oct. 1 that Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield had proposed a 15% renewal increase for the county's employer health insurance plans for 2026.

April Chabot, filling in for staff, summarized the renewal: the county is self-insured and uses Anthem and Delta Dental as administrative services organizations; the renewal would carry a 15% increase with no changes to plan design. Chabot described the county's three high-deductible plan options and summarized the stop-loss arrangements discussed by staff. "The renewal is a 15% increase with no changes to the plan," she said.

Commissioners asked for clarity about employee contributions and plan design. Staff outlined options including modest increases in employee per-pay-period contributions and the potential discontinuation of the lowest-deductible (Upgrade 2) plan as levers to reduce county cost exposure. Commissioners indicated no objection to continuing the county's relationship with Anthem while staff finalizes renewal details and noted the Oct. 15 deadline to confirm the rate. One commissioner framed the choice as a continuity decision: "If the entire market is going 12 to 25% higher, we're not going to see much savings there. We're just going to trade 1 for the other and have all the headaches of starting a new plan with somebody else." The board did not record a formal vote in open session on the renewal but indicated, by consensus, support for staff to proceed with the Anthem renewal and to present any formal changes before the Oct. 8 meeting if needed.

Why it matters: the proposed rate increase could raise county health-insurance expenses for the employer and potentially for employees; staff and commissioners discussed options to limit cost exposure while preserving coverage continuity.