Board renews insurance coverage, selects Sereni for HSA administration and tables employer HSA contribution

The Southampton County School Board voted June 9 to renew its existing insurance contract and authorized the superintendent to sign the renewal documents. The board also approved selection of Sereni — described in staff materials as a subsidiary of Delta Dental of Kansas — to administer employee health savings accounts (HSAs) but tabled any decision on making one-time employer contributions to employees' HSAs.

Administration said insurance premiums had risen in line with statewide trends and that renewing existing coverage was recommended. On HSAs, staff noted the district had not previously offered an HSA-compatible plan; after open enrollment some employees chose the newly offered high-deductible plan and the division ran an RFP to identify an administrator who could have accounts active by the July 1 effective date.

Staff recommended a one-time employer HSA contribution of $1,400 for single plans, $2,200 for dual and $3,000 for family plans to help employees transition to higher deductibles; finance staff estimated the initial cost at roughly $11,000 based on current enrollment in the high-deductible option. Board members raised concerns about timing (open enrollment had closed) and the sustainability of employer contributions as more employees might switch to the HSA-eligible plan; after discussion the board approved Sereni as administrator but tabled the contribution decision for later budget review.

A motion to proceed with the RFP recommendation and contract with Sereni passed; a separate motion to make the one-time contributions was postponed.