Florida Educators Health Trust briefs Brevard on PBM savings, clinic model and program rollout

Fleet (the Florida Educators Health Trust) told the Brevard County School Board on Oct. 28 that it has completed a district-specific data warehouse and a parity analysis of Brevard’s health plan, and that early contract work on the district’s pharmacy benefit manager yielded significant savings.

Fleet officials said the district’s data now flows into a Fleet-owned data warehouse and is analyzed independently from agents or carriers to give the district a clear view of plan performance. ‘‘We have completed the parity analysis,’’ Fleet said, noting Brevard ‘‘is in great shape’’ on paying for its own program.

Jim Powell of Alliant, Fleet’s broker, said Fleet and Alliant reviewed the proposed Cigna pharmacy contract and challenged its financial terms. After negotiations, Cigna revised the terms. ‘‘The result of that planned savings projected next year is $1,100,000 in less claims expense than we projected,’’ Powell said, and Fleet estimated about $3.3 million in plan savings over three years with no changes to employee benefits or the formulary.

Fleet also described the district’s agent-effectuation selection now under way. Staff said 16 firms received the invitation and 11 indicated they would participate; final responses were due Oct. 31 and Fleet planned to notify the selected agent Dec. 15, with a contract effective Feb. 1. Fleet emphasized the selected contract will include performance guarantees and clawbacks that Fleet will audit annually.

Fleet staff outlined clinical-model work intended to complement the district’s wellness program. Officials said they have vetted 19 clinic providers so far (two did not pass), expect more candidates, and intend to engage a clinical-management team whose contract will go to Fleet’s executive board Nov. 5. The clinical-management team will analyze district clinics, require performance guarantees, and drive data into the shared warehouse; Fleet said the team is expected to start activation Jan. 1 and that new clinic arrangements would be part of a planned 2027 program rollout.

Board members asked about clinic scope, physicians versus nurse practitioners on-site, municipal or county partnerships and realistic timelines for opening clinics. Fleet replied clinic openings range from roughly 90 to 180 days depending on scope, site availability and services chosen. Several trustees welcomed Fleet’s approach and the reported pharmacy savings.

Speakers quoted in this article are drawn from the board meeting transcript and are identified by name and role in the article’s speaker list.