Kane County committee warns of rising health‑care costs, readies broker/RFP review before April renewal

Kane County's Human Services Committee spent the bulk of its Feb. 11 meeting focused on rising health‑insurance costs and an active procurement process for benefits administration.

Christine Davis, human resources, told the committee the Blue Cross Blue Shield invoice for December totaled "1,900,000.0" and that the county is about $286,000 toward its reserve. "We didn't want to contribute any more to the reserves, so we wanted to end up flat or go in 1% into reserves," she said.

Committee members said the county's self‑insurance model and bargaining with unions complicate any move away from the incumbent carrier. Anita, a committee member, suggested starting by asking Blue Cross Blue Shield whether plan design changes — such as higher deductibles or removing premium add‑ons — could limit the increase. "Would a better route be to sit down with Blue Cross and Blue Shield and say, okay, what are our options to save money?" she asked.

The committee discussed whether to pursue other carriers; UnitedHealthcare was mentioned as the last comparable bidder. Chair urged urgency, noting the county's renewal timeline: "I I there's a train coming down the tracks at us," the chair said, stressing April as the month for contract decisions.

Christine identified Connor Gallagher (a local broker in Lisle) as the prospective new broker expected to be ready for spring work on claims data and plan comparisons. Committee members confirmed they want clear, comparable bids and noted the need to coordinate with union bargaining teams before making changes to benefits.

The committee directed staff to continue compiling claims data and anecdotal member experiences to present options to both the committee and bargaining representatives ahead of the April renewal.