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Alton selectmen approve new dental plan; defer larger life-insurance change
Summary
After review of broker quotes, the board voted to switch dental coverage from MetLife back to the 'Standard' plan to improve employee experience and save an estimated $126 a year; board deferred a proposed increase in town-paid life insurance from $30,000 to a higher benefit.
Alton — The selectmen on Oct. 14 approved switching the town’s dental plan from MetLife back to the ‘Standard’ carrier recommended by new brokers Melcher & Prescott, keeping medical coverage under Anthem unchanged.
Laura (benefits presenter) told the board the brokers benchmarked municipal plans and recommended returning to the Standard dental plan because employees find MetLife difficult to use; the change was projected to save roughly $126 a year. The brokers also recommended increasing life insurance from the town-paid $30,000 to an amount tied to salary (1x–2x), but Laura and members agreed to defer any change to the life-insurance benefit and any material change to short-term disability until the board can review costs in more detail.
Selectmen asked for clarifications about employee contributions: most employees pay 3.5% of premiums; department heads do not contribute. The Standard plan retains the same dental coverage levels, including an annual per-person maximum cited in the packet as $17.50 — a figure the presenter said would be outlined for board review (the presentation included a detailed benchmarking packet available on request). The board voted to approve the dental-plan switch and authorized Town Administrator Ryan Heath to sign the contract.
The board agreed staff will provide additional detailed benchmarking and the broker’s full packet to any selectman who requests it before taking other benefit changes to final approval.
