Dane County IAC urges county board to reject proposed health plan design changes; committee creates RFP subcommittee request

The Dane County Insurance Advisory Committee voted on Sept. 10 to recommend the county board deny any mid‑term changes to the county’s health insurance plan for the remainder of the current three‑year contract and to seek other ways to meet cost targets that do the least collective harm to employees.

The motion, made by committee member Laura Bridal and seconded by Ina Nidas, also asked county leadership to prioritize alternatives such as voluntary time away, early retirement incentives and, as a last resort, furloughs. The motion instructed the committee to form an IAC subcommittee to review and revise the health‑insurance request‑for‑proposal (RFP) process ahead of the 2027 solicitation so employee representatives have a more meaningful role in any future plan design changes.

Why the committee acted

Committee members described having incomplete information about the administration’s plan design proposal (referred to in staff materials as “option B”), concern about the timing of plan changes ahead of open enrollment and worry about the impact on lower‑paid workers and retirees. M.3 consulting staff presented mid‑year plan loss‑ratio figures and said the county’s group loss ratio through June was running above typical employer targets; staff explained that plan design changes can reduce premiums by shifting cost to members and that doing so can create front‑end savings for the county’s budget.

Several employee representatives told the committee they had surveyed their members; survey results presented by employee groups indicated strong opposition to health plan design changes. Committee members argued the county should pursue alternatives to immediate plan design reductions and fix longer‑term procurement issues that led to limited competition in the last RFP.

Formal action and vote

Motion: Recommend to the county board denial of any and all plan changes to health insurance for the remainder of the current three‑year contract, and if cost savings are required from county employees in the interim, implement other approaches which do the least collective harm to county employees, such as voluntary time away, early retirement initiatives, and as the last resort, furloughs. Finally, create an IAC RFP subcommittee to review and revise the RFP process for health insurance ahead of the early 2027 solicitation so employee representatives have a meaningful voice in any plan design changes.

Mover: Laura Bridal Second: Ina Nidas

Roll‑call tally (as read into the record): - Yes/support: Marissa Burack; Laura Bridal; Misha Dancing Waters; Travis Thomas; Tayna Knight; Scott Drummond; Brian Tuscher; Heidi Fogo; Brenda Swenson (9 yes) - No: Joshua Cottelier (1 no) - Abstain: Christy Khlebowski; Arlen Halverson; Jeffrey Glazer; Matt Veldron (4 abstain) - Absent/not voting: Patrick Shellenberger; Chris Liddell (2 absent)

Outcome: Motion passed (9 yes, 1 no, 4 abstain). The committee requested the motion language be emailed for inclusion in the minutes and directed staff to place discussion of forming an RFP subcommittee on the December agenda.

Key committee requests and follow‑ups

- The committee asked county administration and consultants for clearer, timely, quantifiable metrics documenting provider access, vacancies, wait times and hiring so the committee can measure whether stated improvements reach county plan members. - Several members asked for more transparency on the fiscal calculations behind plan options, including how proposed plan design changes affect premium collections and where any resulting savings would be held or used. - The committee requested staff place the RFP subcommittee item on the December agenda and asked that motion language be circulated and included in the record before the county board considers related plan changes.

What the motion does and does not do

The committee’s motion is a recommendation to the Dane County Board; it does not itself change plan benefits or vendors. County staff and consultants noted the contract with the county’s insurer includes an annual renewal process and language that allows plan‑design adjustments during the contract term; committee members said they want a separate collaborative process to review procurement and insurance‑design choices ahead of the next RFP cycle.