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Destin council approves 'difference card' reimbursement plan to curb health‑insurance renewal hike
Summary
Council authorized staff to implement a medical reimbursement plan (the Difference Card) and to move the city’s group health coverage to a single UnitedHealthcare plan with an accompanying reimbursement bucket to reduce premium increases and keep employee benefits stable.
The City of Destin voted unanimously Monday to implement a medical expense reimbursement program commonly called the “Difference Card” alongside a move to a single UnitedHealthcare plan, a change staff said will limit the council’s near‑term insurance costs and preserve employee benefits.
City benefits consultant Mike Carraway presented the plan at the June 16 meeting, telling council that after negotiating the Blue Cross Blue Shield renewal the city faced a proposed increase of “just over 20%” and had negotiated that to about 15%. He said UnitedHealthcare’s market quote was materially lower than the Blue Cross renewal and that the Difference Card (a Medical Expense Reimbursement Plan, MERP) would let the city adopt a higher deductible design without increasing employees’ out‑of‑pocket costs.
“If we can move to this program … it’s going to improve the benefits for the employees,” Carraway said. For single employees, the program would provide a $3,500 reimbursement bucket (and $7,000 for family coverage) that pays certain first‑dollar expenses so participants on the plan would not face higher out‑of‑pocket costs compared with current benefits, he said.
Carraway presented financial exhibits the consultant team had prepared showing a guaranteed, year‑one savings compared with the Blue Cross renewal. He said the revised carrier and program fixed costs were lower than the Blue Cross renewal and that the city’s “revised max cost” (carrier + MERP funding) was still below the renewal estimate from the incumbent carrier. Carraway said the model includes stop‑loss reinsurance and that any unused MERP funds would be returned to the city at year end.
Council members asked clarifying questions about network continuity, exposure for employees with catastrophic medical needs and how the Difference Card would be administered at the point of service. Carraway and UnitedHealthcare representatives said UnitedHealthcare’s Choice Plus network has broad provider coverage in northwest Florida and that staff would conduct individual employee sessions to ensure members understood the change.
Councilman Bagby moved to direct staff to implement the Difference Card program and to proceed with a competitively priced high‑deductible base plan; the motion was seconded and the council voted 7‑0 to proceed.
Ending: City staff will move forward with plan implementation and vendor transitions; staff said it would provide employee education and individual benefit counseling before the new plan goes into effect.
