Agenda - 09-03-1996 - IX-B - Laserfiche WebLink

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4 January 1, 1997. Under a sole provider contract,the County could continue to offer more than one Blue Cross plan type through the Health Insurance Trust as it does now. Approximately 144 employees currently are enrolled in the Healthsource plan. If the County changed to a sole provider contract for the Blue Cross plans through the Trust,these employees would have to change to either the Blue Cross Preferred Provider Plan or the Blue Cross Personal Care Plan during open enrollment for 1997. Both the Blue Cross Personal Care Plan and Healthsource are health maintenance organizations (HMOs). The benefits offered by the two plans are relatively similar. In terms of required co-payments, the Personal Care Plan requires fewer co-payments. As to physicians in the network,Healthsource offers a broader physician network. Healthsource also includes Duke Hospital and Duke physicians in its network. The Blue Cross Personal Care Plan does not include Duke Hospital or physicians in its network. Dependent Subsidy Orange County provides a partial subsidy to offset the employee cost of dependent coverage. This subsidy is calculated using the Blue Cross plans as the base plan, determining 40 percent of each dependent coverage category and then applying that same dollar amount to dependent coverage under Healthsource. The health insurance cost estimates reflect continuation of the 40 percent dependent subsidy. Health Insurance Waiver Option As part of the 1996 review,the Board decided to reduce the amount of the health insurance waiver option. Previously this option had provided that an employee could waive health insurance coverage and receive $67.50 each month in lieu of coverage, if he or she had health insurance coverage through another provider. For 1996 the Board reduced the amount to $50 each month for current employees and to $25 each month for employees hired January 1, 1996 and after. During the 1996 Open Enrollment, six employees currently participating in the waiver elected to drop it and no additional employees elected to participate. Of the six employees electing to drop the waiver, four elected individual coverage and two elected family coverage. The net cost impact of the change in waiver participation was an increase in annual cost of about$1800. This takes account of the cost savings from the reduction in the waiver amount and the additional cost of the health coverage for the six employees.