Lowndes County employees will save on medical insurance costs after supervisors opted to transition from a fully-insured to a self-insured system.
The county also switched insurance companies. It will now work with United Insurance instead of Blue Cross Blue Shield.
The current overall cost under a fully-insured Blue Cross plan is about $1.7 million, with a quote for the same coverage in 2014 estimated at $1.95 million. Under the self-insured plan from United Insurance, that rate drops to slightly more than $1.5 million. As a contingency, supervisors added 10 percent to that amount in case insurance claims run higher than expected. That would still be below the current costs.
County administrator Ralph Billingsley said a committee formed to analyze how county medical insurance should be handled next year recommended the switch because it could mean up to $300,000 in savings. If the additional 10 percent set aside for extra claims is not needed, that $152,000 will be placed in county reserves, he said. Billingsley, supervisors Harry Sanders and Leroy Brooks and chief financial officer Dave Basinger were on the committee.
In the switch from a fully to self-funded plan, employees create their own coverage plans based on individual needs and pay claims out of pocket from collected premiums. Money collected by the county is paid out only when claims occur as opposed to paying an insurance provider in advance to cover projected claims as well as administrative expenses.
Lowndes County has approximately 300 employees.
Nathan Gregory covers city and county government for The Dispatch.
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