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York County adopts revised employee health plan: Medica renewal negotiated down; county adjusts contributions
Summary
After a presentation from Ben Royal of Cornerstone Insurance Group, York County commissioners approved changes to employee health insurance: Medica’s proposed increase was negotiated from 19.9% to 18%, the single-employee monthly cost was set at $90, and the county will discontinue HSA contributions except for an employee-only stipend.
York County commissioners voted to adopt a revised employee health insurance arrangement after hearing a renewal presentation from Ben Royal of Cornerstone Insurance Group.
Royal told the board that Medica, the county’s current carrier, initially proposed a 19.9% rate increase driven by a loss ratio ‘‘around a 110%’’ for the county group; he said he negotiated that request down to an 18% increase. Commissioners discussed plan design options, employee cost-sharing and the limits of county contributions before moving to approve staff recommendations with two changes.
Under the adopted changes, the county will: set the per-month employee share on the traditional (PPO) plan at $90 for single coverage; set an employee-only HSA stipend at $800; continue the county HRA contribution in the traditional plan; and discontinue county HSA contributions for tiers other than employee-only. Chair (S2) described the county’s total health-insurance budget line as about $1,150,000 with a separate $50,000 HRA allocation.
Ben Royal said Medica’s loss ratio for York County has been above 100% and that claims history constrained competitors from offering better pricing. "They were losing money on York County," Royal said, adding that Medica had initially asked for a 19.9% increase before negotiations lowered it to 18%.
Commissioners discussed trade-offs between the traditional plan and an HSA option: the HSA carries lower premiums but higher initial out-of-pocket risk until employees build HSA balances; the traditional plan is simpler and some employees prefer its predictability. Commissioners also emphasized that open enrollment communications will be essential; staff scheduled in-person sign-up sessions at the courthouse and department locations during the county’s open-enrollment period.
Commissioner (S7) moved to approve the recommendation with two changes (set single-employee PPO monthly cost to $90, and set the employee-only HSA stipend to $800); the motion was seconded and passed on a roll call vote. Staff will finalize enrollment materials and notify employees ahead of the open-enrollment window.
