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21 <br /> 1 • Implement a$200 per month surcharge to the employee contribution for spousal coverage <br /> 2 when spouse has health insurance coverage with their employer. <br /> 3 • Currently, 144 spouses are enrolled in the County's health plan. Staff from the North <br /> 4 Carolina Health Insurance Pool (NCHIP) estimate that 20% of spouses or approximately <br /> 5 29 spouses would choose to remain on the County plans despite having alternative <br /> 6 coverage. <br /> 7 • If those employees were charged an extra $200 to maintain spousal coverage, direct <br /> 8 revenue to the plan would increase by $70,000. <br /> 9 <br /> 10 Below is a chart showing the estimated direct financial impact: <br /> 11 <br /> Spousal Surcharge Modelin <br /> Current Covered Spouses 144 <br /> Estimated % w Other Coverage 20% <br /> Monthly Surcharge Amount $200 <br /> Estimated Spouses Impacted 29 <br /> Estimated Surcharge Revenue $69,120 <br /> Surcharge Revenue Offset $69,120 <br /> 12 <br /> 13 The spousal surcharge may also have an indirect savings to the plan by discouraging <br /> 14 migration to the County's plan from coverage available to the spouse of a County <br /> 15 employee. The County currently contributes an additional $600 per month to move <br /> 16 from an employee only plan to an employee plus spouse plan and an additional $800 <br /> 17 per month to move from an employee plus children plan to a full family plan. <br /> 18 Discouraging migration to the County plan has the potential to save the additional <br /> 19 County premium contribution associated with coverage a spouse as well as the <br /> 20 additional cost of claims incurred by the spouse. Predicting the claims savings is <br /> 21 difficult without direct experience. <br /> 22 <br /> 23 Dental Insurance <br /> 24 The County provides dental coverage for active employees. No rate increase is recommended <br /> 25 for FY 2026-27. <br /> 26 <br /> 27 Brenda Bartholomew, Human Resources Director, reviewed the background information <br /> 28 for the item. She made the following presentation: <br /> 29 <br /> 30 <br />