City selects Cigna for employee medical benefits; vendor offers estimated $378,000 in savings and wellness funds

City officials approved a recommendation Wednesday to move the city’s group medical, dental and vision coverage for the 2025–26 plan year to Cigna Healthcare.

Staff solicited competitive quotes from UnitedHealthcare (current carrier), Cigna and Aetna and requested plan enhancements based on employee feedback. The recommended Cigna plan reduces deductibles (for example, employee core deductible proposed to drop from $750 to $350), lowers out-of-pocket maxima and reduces the specialty prescription copay tier from $75 to $50. Under the proposed plan the city would also receive discretionary funds that staff said could be used for on-site wellness initiatives.

City staff reported that, with the requested plan enhancements, Cigna offered a projected savings of about $378,000 compared with the current plan and provided the largest discretionary fund—$500,000—to support wellness initiatives. Staff noted the vendor also offered a level-funding structure with a year-two rate cap (9%) and a shared-savings arrangement if actual claims costs come in below projections.

Council approved the recommendation on roll call. Staff said the discretionary funds could be used to pilot an on-site clinic providing wellness exams, vaccinations, urgent care visits, lab services and health coaching—programs staff highlighted as useful both for employee wellbeing and long-term cost control.

Why this matters: The contract affects employee benefits, city payroll costs and workplace wellness investments. Staff said the recommendation balances near-term benefit improvements with cost stability over a multi-year horizon.