St. Joseph County to shop for new health insurance consultant

South Bend Tribune (IN)

Dec. 29--SOUTH BEND -- St. Joseph County Council members have decided to shop for a different health insurance consulting firm to potentially cut costs.

The plan was crafted despite some pushback from Andy Kostielney, the Republican president of the county's Board of Commissioners, which is responsible for approving such contracts.

In response to feedback from council members, a committee was formed earlier this month to develop a request for proposals for such firms, which help manage health insurance plans to keep costs down.

Officials hope to put out the request by the end of February, enabling firms to submit proposals showing how much the county could expect to pay for their services. Proposals will also show how much the county could expect to spend on its group health insurance plan by working with firms.

Kostielney said the county's self-funded insurance plan, which provides coverage for about 1,200 employees, is already in good shape and that costs are low in comparison to other counties' plans in the state. He believes it will be difficult to find a consulting firm that would do a better job than the county's current one, R&R Benefits of South Bend.

"I think we should make some tweaks (to the plan), but I'm not looking to make any big changes to what we do," Kostielney said. "But the council doesn't have that level of comfort, so I thought the easiest thing to do was to go with what they wanted."

He said shopping for a different firm is not a wise use of the county's "time, energy and money."

"My concern is we're going to take away the focus from making improvements to our health care plan that we would normally do in the winter," he said.

R&R Benefits, hired by the Board of Commissioners in 2013, will submit a proposal to make a case for keeping its job. Commissioners already established a contract for 2017 with the firm, but they could decide to pull out of it at any time.

According to R&R, the overall cost of the county's health insurance plan hasn't climbed much in recent years. In 2013, for example, the county paid a total of about $11.04 million ($9,895 per employee), which includes fixed costs and medical and prescription drug expenses. This year, the county is projected to pay about $11.5 million ($10,500 per employee).

Council members decided on Dec. 20 to form the committee after hearing a presentation about the county's group health insurance plan by Pete Agostino, deputy county attorney. Council members on the committee are Robert Kruszynski Jr., Corey Noland, Mark Catanzarite and Mark Root.

Other committee members are Kostielney, Agostino, county Auditor Mike Hamann and county attorney Jamie Woods. County attorneys are expected to develop the request for proposals, although it's possible the county could hire an outside consultant for assistance.

Kruszynski said that by allowing other firms to present proposals, the county will have the chance to make sure it is getting the best bargain.

"R&R says they have the lowest rates around," he said. "And that may be true, but we won't know until we go after an RFP."

R&R has been paid about $845,000 by the county since it was hired in early 2013, which translates into more than $200,000 per year, according to Bob Frick, the firm's chief operating officer. The company helps oversee all components of the county's plan. Among other things, it negotiates contracts with health providers, such as hospitals, and provides oversight over employees' medical bills to ensure there aren't errors.

Frick said that to his knowledge, the per-employee cost of the county's insurance plan is lower than any other county's plan in the state. He was surprised that council members are considering working with other firms.

"But I think it's a great opportunity to share with council members the type of work we're doing and compare it with other people," he said.

Frick said R&R receives 15 percent of the annual premium paid by the county to its provider of stop-loss insurance. That coverage only takes effect after the county has paid $250,000 on its own for an employee's medical bills.

___

Visit the South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Ind.) at www.southbendtribune.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.