Cowlitz County HR seeks approval to start insurer switch; staff says immediate savings likely

At a recent Cowlitz County board meeting, Jessica Warren, human resources director, asked the board for permission to submit an online application to begin the county’s move from WCIF to Regence for employee health coverage and to place the finalized plan on a future consent agenda.

Warren said the plan would keep employees on the same network (“blue to blue”) while reducing cost and that the county had discussed the numbers in executive session. “It’s roughly a 2% decrease from WCIF versus what WCIF would have been was, like, a 14% increase,” Warren said. She added the county plans to move to tiered rates for most groups and that memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with bargaining groups will be on the board's agenda in the next week or two.

Board members asked for the specific numbers and Warren said she could provide them; she described the application as time-sensitive because online enrollment must start to meet implementation timelines. A board member gave informal approval during the meeting for Warren to complete the online application and later present the finalized agreement on the consent agenda.

Warren said the county would present the finalized MOUs with bargaining groups to the board for approval before implementation. She noted the board has discussed the coverage options in executive session but did not present detailed financial tables in open session during the meeting. No formal, recorded vote on the carrier change appeared in the transcript.

Next steps: HR will submit the online application to initiate the Regence onboarding process, prepare detailed cost comparisons for the board, and bring MOUs and the finalized plan to a future meeting for formal approval.