County Council votes for health insurance changes, but cost of coverage for County employees won’t increase

Oct. 11--There will be changes in health insurance for Aiken County employees next year, but they won't have to pay more for their coverage.

By a 5-3 vote Tuesday night during a special meeting, County Council approved a motion made by Councilman Chuck Smith that would raise the deductible and the emergency room co-pay for one of the three plans offered to County workers through BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina.

For the basic plan, the deductible would increase from $1,250/$2,500 to $2,000/$4,000. The emergency room co-pay would increase from $150 to $250.

The basic plan has a mid-range deductible compared to the high deductible and low deductible plans for County employees.

In addition, the nicotine surcharge for County workers who use tobacco products would increase from $60 to $100 per month based on Smith's motion.

Also part of the motion's package was the testing of County employees for tobacco product use if it can be determined that it is legal and if BlueCross BlueShield will agree to include it in the County's employee insurance plan.

Along with Smith, who represents District 4, Danny Feagin of District 3, Sandy Haskell of District 5, Phil Napier of District 6 and Willar Hightower Jr. of District 8 voted for the motion.

Interim Chairman Andrew Siders of District 7, Camille Furgiuele of District 2 and Kathy Rawls of District 1 voted against it.

The changes to the basic plan will reduce the County's premium renewal rate for 2018 from 16 percent to 12.8 percent, said County Human Resources Director Gayle Wolman.

The vote by Council authorized County Administrator Clay Killian to make the approved adjustments to the County's health insurance plan.

The special meeting was held in Council Chambers in the Aiken County Government Center.

Before the meeting, there was a special work session in Council Chambers, and Council members discussed health insurance at length after listening to a presentation by Wolman. Smith pushed hard for employees to be tested for tobacco product use.

Also during the work session, Scott Singer, chairman of the Community Relations Council, or CRC, made a presentation to Council about what the group learned during six public hearings earlier this year.

"One thing that came out was folks were really interested in recycling, particularly as it related to glass," said Singer, who is a former County Councilman.

But some people, he added, also were concerned that proximity to recycling facilities and the noise associated with them devalued their homes.

In addition, the hearings' attendees were worried about litter, roads in disrepair, lack of proper stormwater drainage and abandoned buildings. They also were concerned about bullying, fighting and drugs in the public schools.

The hearings' participants, Singer said, were especially interested in development plans near USC Aiken. They also asked for greater oversight of developers and expressed a desire for more sidewalks and bicycle trails as well as an improved system of public transportation to link County residents to parks, towns, recreation and entertainment.

Singer ended his presentation by making recommendations.

"We think that Council needs to give a formal and public response to the six public hearings and use the media and Aiken County's website to address the concerns raised," he said.

Singer also suggested that Council come up with a formal action plan "for deployment of resources and timeframes."

In addition, he recommended sharing the information gathered during the hearings with various "established community groups" and holding additional public hearings.

"There is a lot of good information here, and we'll take it and use it for the benefit of the County," Siders said.

But Napier expressed disappointment in the number of people who attended the six hearings, which was about 100, 73 of whom completed surveys.

He said the participation was too low for Council "to base a lot" on the finding that were presented.

In January 2016, Council passed an ordinance to create CRC. It replaced the inactive Human Relations Commission, which had been formed in 1991.

According to Singer's presentation, the purpose of CRC is to "cultivate and encourage unity, mutual understanding and respect among all people of the County, and to seek ways to improve community relations."

Dede Biles is a general assignment reporter for the Aiken Standard and has been with the newspaper since January 2013. A native of Concord, N.C, she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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