Flagler County workshop: consultants recommend ~9% premium increases after several million-dollar claims

Flagler County officials and their benefits consultant told commissioners at a June 2 workshop that recent large claims have driven a recommendation to raise both employer and employee contributions for the county's self-funded medical plan.

The county's benefits consultant, Sherry Binier of the Bailey Group, told the Board of County Commissioners workshop that the plan has seen several multi-hundred-thousand-dollar and million-dollar claim months in the last 18 months and that stop-loss insurance has reduced but not eliminated plan volatility. "I just received notice, last week. We have another million, $1,200,000 claim that's about to hit," Binier said. She told commissioners that the stop-loss coverage will reimburse most of that exposure.

The update summarized claims, prescription rebates, stop-loss premiums and administrative fees paid to Florida Blue (medical) and…