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Oceana County opts out of Aflac payroll deductions, plans transition to Allstate
Summary
Citing repeated difficulty contacting Aflac, the Oceana County Board voted to end offering payroll-deducted Aflac voluntary benefits and transition to Allstate effective Aug. 1, 2025. Administrators will work out presentation and enrollment details for employees.
The Oceana County Board voted June 26 to opt out of its current voluntary benefit arrangement with AFLAC and to transition to offering voluntary benefits through Allstate effective Aug. 1, 2025.
The motion, moved by Commissioner Craig Hardy and supported by Commissioner Joel McCormick, noted repeated efforts to contact Aflac representatives had failed. Administrator Tracy Byard said the county had attempted additional contacts at the board's request but still "no contact was made with the County." Chairperson Robert H. Walker commented that if the local Aflac representative is not available, "the County will no longer be dealing with Aflac." The motion passed on recorded vote.
Byard told commissioners that Allstate has a local representative willing to meet with employees and present during open enrollment. Commissioners discussed whether to allow two vendors concurrently and whether payroll deduction should be available; several commissioners supported removing payroll deduction for such policies. Byard said if both firms were available the board could prohibit new enrollments in Aflac until any service issue is resolved.
Next steps: Administrator's Office will work out transition details, coordinate an Allstate presentation, notify current policyholders of the upcoming change, and address payroll deduction logistics prior to Aug. 1, 2025.
