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Dubois County approves ER co-pay, moves to Unified Care and backs on-site clinic option for employees
Summary
The Dubois County commissioners approved a $250 emergency-room co-pay and a switch to the Unified Care Connect program effective Jan. 1, 2026, and gave a consensus to pursue an employer-sponsored on-site clinic option and a tightened employee wellness standard.
The Dubois County Board of Commissioners on Aug. 18 approved a $250 emergency-room co-pay for county employees and voted to move the county’s health-plan management to the Unified Care Connect program effective Jan. 1, 2026.
HR Generalist Markie Rhodes and broker Max Bawel of Houchens Insurance Group presented plan changes and options to the board, including a Deaconess Clinic at Work model that would cost the county $42.11 per employee per month (estimated $115,718 for 229 covered lives) and provide no cost, no deductible clinic visits for participating employees. Rhodes said the board’s consensus was favorable to proceed and she will bring final paperwork to the Sept. 2 meeting for approval.
Rhodes described the ER co-pay motion as a continuation of changes discussed at previous meetings; the board voted to approve the $250 co-pay beginning Jan. 1, 2026. The board also approved switching from Hines Care Management to Unified Care Connect on the same date.
Bawel outlined other plan measures the county endorsed: a Good Samaritan Fund option that would remove some employees from the county plan if they qualify (Bawel estimated the county cost at roughly $55,000 only if employees enroll), and adding bio‑similar drugs to the prescription formulary to encourage lower-cost alternatives before specialty medications.
On wellness design, Rhodes presented recommendations from the Wellness Team Committee to retain the plan’s existing structure, keep monthly lunch-and-learns, require covered spouses to participate in screenings and meet 3 of 5 standards by 2027, add waist circumference as an option in the BMI category and tighten the cholesterol standard to 210. The board moved, seconded and carried approval of the wellness plan as presented.
Rhodes also reported June 2025 screening data showing improvement in three measures compared with 2024: blood pressure (92% met the goal in 2025 vs. 81% in 2024), cholesterol (76% vs. 72%) and glucose (73% vs. 66%).
The board requested Rhodes provide final plan documents at the next meeting; the Deaconess Clinic paperwork is expected Sept. 2, 2025.
