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County renews Sanford health plan; commissioners increase employer share to offset part of 13.7% premium rise
Summary
The board voted to continue employee coverage with Sanford despite a proposed 13.7% renewal increase and agreed to raise the county’s contribution (covering roughly 9.9% of the increase) to reduce the immediate impact on employees; staff presented HSA and account‑fee details.
Codington County commissioners on Oct. 14 approved renewing employee health coverage with Sanford Health Plan and set the county’s contribution to absorb a portion of a proposed 13.7% premium increase.
Auditor Brenda Hatton presented the renewal terms and the proposed 13.7% increase. County staff explained that, under standard policy, the county covers 5% of premium increases but recommended covering a larger share this year to limit the cost impact to employees. Commissioners agreed to increase the county contribution so that the county would cover about 9.9% of the 13.7% renewal increase; the board approved the change by voice vote (motion by Gable, second by Johnson).
Staff also presented plan options and noted HSA details: under the HSA option, the employer contribution for an employee electing single coverage would include $239.60 deposited to the employee’s HSA. The HSA account manager fee noted in the packet remains $3 per enrolled individual. County staff said employees have voiced that they favor the current plan and that last year’s restraint by the insurer helped moderate increases; this year’s loss ratio drove the larger proposed increase.
Commissioners approved two related motions: to continue with Sanford Health Plan for the coming period and to adopt the proposed employer/employee premium split that increases county cost‑sharing to offset part of the 13.7% rise. Staff indicated the precise monthly premium amounts for each deductible option were in the packet; the transcript included detailed premium figures but several figures in the spoken record were not clearly read aloud and should be confirmed in the official renewal documents.
The board instructed staff to finalize plan enrollment materials and notify employees of the renewed plan, the county contribution, and HSA funding details.
