Commission hears competitive health-insurance bids and Mako trust warns about one‑year low quotes
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Summary
County staff and brokers presented competing health-insurance proposals (Big Sky, Southwestern/Cigna, and a Mako trust renewal). Mako representatives cautioned that outside carriers can offer attractive first‑year pricing without pooled claims data and that such offers can lead to large second‑year increases; commissioners asked for side‑by‑side comparisons and asked Mako to prepare spreadsheets for next week.
Commissioners spent a significant portion of the Feb. 17 meeting reviewing competing proposals to provide employee health benefits for Granite County.
Two brokers — Jamie Foy of Big Sky Benefit Solutions and Julie Boston of Southwestern Montana Insurance — presented alternative packages and quotes. Big Sky framed a local, hands-on broker relationship with regular reviews and technology options. Southwestern highlighted competitive bids it received in the late window, including a Cigna bid that the broker said "blew this thing away" on initial pricing.
Mako (the county's existing healthcare trust) representatives (Sherry and Pam) cautioned that carriers submitting low, late bids often lack access to the county's pooled claims history—that information is used in the trust to stabilize rates across years. "For every dollar that we have taken in, we've paid out a dollar 25," a Mako representative said, explaining the pooled structure and why an outside carrier's low first-year price can be followed by steep second-year increases once actual claims are known.
Why it matters: Commissioners asked staff to obtain a firm side-by-side comparison of plan benefits, deductibles, networks and pharmacy design, and asked Mako to produce a spreadsheet comparing renewals, alternatives, and the "family-friendly" tiering options the trust proposed.
Next steps: Mako offered to run detailed comparisons and to meet again next week (when Mako representatives will be available in person) so the commission can make a decision before the carrier-notice deadlines.