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Board approves property, equipment and workers’ compensation renewals and retains claims administrator and safety consultant
Summary
The board approved property and boiler/equipment insurance renewals, approved excess workers’ compensation coverage (including an offered two-year option), and retained its third-party claims administrator and safety consultant; staff reported favorable initial health-insurance loss ratios for 2025.
The Saint Mary Parish School Board approved a package of insurance renewals and related contracts covering property, equipment breakdown, and excess workers’ compensation, and voted to retain its existing third-party administrator (TPA) for claims administration and a safety consultant for loss-control services.
For building and contents coverage the board approved a renewal with an upper premium limit of $2,054,007.06 for the policy year beginning April 1, 2025. The district’s insurance advisor explained that this figure is a negotiated cap and the agent will continue negotiating before binding the policy; the final bound premium could be lower. The board also approved renewal of boiler and machinery (equipment breakdown) coverage at a premium of $11,004.97 for the year beginning April 1, 2025.
The board approved renewal of excess workers’ compensation coverage for the program year beginning May 1, 2025. The district’s self-funded program retains a self-insured retention (SIR) of $850,000; the annual premium for the excess coverage was reported as $98,002.39. Midwest, the carrier writing the excess, offered a true two-year policy that would lock the premium for two years; the board approved the two-year option to avoid returning for approval next year.
Because the district self-funds claims, the board also approved retaining the current claims administrator (a TPA based in Tyler, Texas) despite a flat annual fee increase (from $21,003.67 to $29,003.67). The board approved continuing loss-control and safety work with RiskWise at the same fee ($12,000). Board staff explained the TPA fee increase is tied to rising claim counts and that self-funding still produces sizable savings compared with going fully insured. Staff reported the district’s estimated self-funded cost for the year (claims, excess premium, TPA fees, safety program, and assessments) would be about $640,928, roughly $454,000 less than a fully insured premium quote.
Earlier in the meeting the board received a group health insurance premium-and-claims summary through February 2025. The district’s claims ratio for January and February was reported at roughly 89.2% and 86% respectively, with about $2.25 million in premiums collected and approximately $1.9 million in claims paid year-to-date. Staff flagged prescription drug trends (noting GLP‑1 drugs) as an area of ongoing concern.
Each insurance recommendation was moved and approved by the board during the meeting.
