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County benefits consultant reports 2024 claims down; offers strategies to build reserve and control pharmacy costs
Summary
The county’s benefits consultant reviewed 2024 plan performance, said stop‑loss and overall claims were lower than prior expectations, and recommended establishing a reserve and targeted programs to manage future large claims and rising pharmacy costs.
A benefits consultant presented a fiscal review of Clark County’s employee health plan on April 8 and recommended the court consider building a reserve to smooth volatility and to pursue targeted initiatives — including early-detection programs and pharmacy-management strategies — to limit large future claims.
The presenter said the county’s negotiated stop-loss and fixed costs resulted in a net savings and that expected claims were down from the prior year. The consultant noted a current large inpatient claim that has exceeded the specific stop-loss and said pharmacy spending built up as a share of total costs because medical was unusually low in the reporting period. The consultant recommended a strategy to create a budget reserve funded from existing premiums to prepare for large future claims and suggested bringing pharmacy consultants and population-health experts to help design targeted programs for 2026.
Court members asked about the timeline for providing budget scenarios (50% or 100% reserve funding examples) before the upcoming budget workshop; the consultant said staff would prepare numbers for the budget process. The consultant also reviewed plan-year performance metrics, discounts negotiated with networks, and a minimum rebate guarantee the county is expected to receive.
There was no formal court vote tied to the presentation; commissioners asked the consultant to prepare reserve scenarios and to return recommended strategies for the 2026 budget workshop.
