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Balch Springs Council approves new employee health and benefits plan for FY2026
Summary
The City Council voted unanimously July 28 to adopt a new benefits package for fiscal year 2026 after staff presented an RFP analysis that recommended changing medical and ancillary vendors and shifting some cost increases to employees. Council required one‑on‑one enrollment counseling for every employee.
Balch Springs City Council approved a new employee health and ancillary benefits package for fiscal year 2026 during its July 28 meeting. The motion, moved and seconded during the meeting, passed on a unanimous roll call.
Staff presented results of a comprehensive request for proposals and recommended switching primary medical coverage from the city’s existing plan to UnitedHealthcare, moving dental and vision (and several life products) to MetLife and consolidating voluntary accident, critical‑illness and hospital‑indemnity products under Guardian. Staff also recommended Norton for identity protection and LegalEase for legal services. Gallagher, the city’s benefits broker, ran the RFP and will provide one‑on‑one benefit counseling to every employee during enrollment.
The staff presentation said UnitedHealthcare returned a lower projected renewal than Blue Cross Blue Shield (the incumbent) in the city’s modeling. To limit the city’s budget impact, staff recommended shifting the medical renewal increases to employees while preserving the city’s existing contribution levels. Under the recommended cost model, example monthly increases to employee payroll deductions were presented for several tiers (employee only, employee+spouse, employee+children and family) and staff said some employees could see net decreases in total out‑of‑pocket when reduced costs for dental, vision and voluntary products were included. Gallagher will provide mandatory enrollment counseling to help employees choose the plan that fits their needs.
Council members asked about network continuity and customer service. One council member expressed a preference for keeping Blue Cross Blue Shield because of perceived ease of access for members; staff responded that UnitedHealthcare’s network would cover roughly 99.2% of current employee providers based on the city’s analysis.
The council’s recorded vote was: Hill — Yes; Mayor Pro Tem Garcia — Yes; Gabriel — Yes; Patino — Yes; Miles — Yes; Salal — Yes. The council did not attach additional conditions to staff’s recommendation at the time of the vote.
Staff sources: benefits presentation (RFP results), quoted renewal comparisons and employee example provided during the July 28 council meeting.
