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Health Service Board approves phased expansion of voluntary benefits to broader employee group
Summary
The board approved moving forward with a phased expansion of voluntary benefits (supplemental life, accident, cancer insurance and similar products) beyond a 1,100-person pilot group; employees will pay premiums and staff will work with vendors on enrollment logistics.
The Health Service Board voted Dec. 9 to proceed with a phased expansion of voluntary benefits to a broader group of City and County employees for plan year 2017.
Deputy Director Mitchell Griggs said HSS currently offers voluntary benefits (supplemental life, accident, cancer insurance, identity protection and others) to about 1,100 executives and managers under an existing MOU. Griggs said HSS and consultant Aon are surveying demand and assessing enrollment processes with vendor Employee Benefit Specialists (EBS) to ensure sufficient bandwidth for a larger roll-out.
"What we wanna do is pick eventually maybe the top three to start with, and then offer that and see how that goes," Griggs said, explaining the phased approach and that most voluntary products would be employee-paid rather than employer-funded flex credits.
Commissioners discussed implementation logistics, potential evidence-of-insurability requirements and the need to keep the program competitive with private vendors. Griggs said the design aims to avoid additional cost to the city by allowing vendors to embed administrative fees in premiums.
After a motion and second, the board approved proceeding with plans to develop a voluntary-benefits package for a broader employee base, with the caveat staff returns with vendor proposals and cost estimates. The board also asked staff to consider communications and enrollment timing for the next open enrollment cycle.
