Taylor County reviews health‑insurance options to reduce premiums for employees

Michael Watkins, an insurance agent with Accenture Insurance, told the Taylor County Board of County Commissioners on March 25 that the county can pursue multiple plan‑design changes and carrier bids to reduce health‑insurance premiums for employees.

Watkins, who was in the meeting with a colleague identified as Crystal, said options include adjusting deductibles and copayments, offering multiple plan tiers, switching to a high‑deductible HSA plan, implementing health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), or moving to a self‑funded model. He said some changes can produce sizable premium decreases but also carry risks for employees.

Watkins explained why plan design matters and gave examples drawn from last year’s renewal. "If you turn to, page 3, you'll see which is option 7 and 8... that was a 19% decrease," he said, describing an HSA option that produced the biggest premium drop in the sample set from the prior year. He said an HSA option under discussion had a $1,600 individual deductible, a $3,200 family deductible, and an $8,000 individual out‑of‑pocket limit ($16,100 family), and that pharmacy benefits on that plan would be subject to the medical deductible.

Watkins also described HRAs — employer‑funded accounts that reimburse employees for some expenses — as a way to raise deductibles, capture premium savings and use part of those savings to reimburse employees for initial costs. "You raise your deductible, you get a lower premium, you just have some premium savings and use some of that savings to fund an HRA," he said. He warned that self‑funding can produce savings over time but also exposes the employer to unpredictable claim volatility: "First year went fine... Second plan year has not gone well. They've had to actually not only pay in the reserves, but pay a little more money that they didn't expect to have to pay in because the claims are running high."

Board members and staff discussed practical steps and timing. Watkins said renewal data typically arrives in mid‑to‑late May and that counties generally need to complete bidding and open‑enrollment preparations in June–July to hold open enrollment in August. Board members expressed interest in soliciting proposals for competitive quotes and in having consultants request all potential renewal options from the incumbent carrier before going to bid.

The discussion also covered enrollment design choices that can reduce premiums in the short term — including offering a single employer‑paid tier and additional employee‑paid tiers, or increasing employee contributions to premiums — and the tradeoffs these choices create for retention and risk pooling.

Board direction: participants agreed to pursue competitive proposals and to request full renewal options from UnitedHealthcare as the county’s current baseline. No formal roll‑call vote was recorded in the workshop.

The board asked staff and the insurance consultants to return with concrete renewal data and competitive proposals ahead of the county’s renewal window so the commission can decide whether to change plan design, carrier or funding approach for the 2026 plan year.