County’s self-insured program will remain

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March 3, 2012 - 12:00 AM

Allen County will continue to offer health insurance to its employees through a partially self-insured program.
County commissioners, gathering in an adjourned meeting Thursday, eschewed a proposal to go back to being fully insured through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas.
Premiums would have been lower through BCBS at the outset, although the county likely wouldn’t realize any savings, commissioners noted, because of run-out costs associated with ending the self-insurance plan. Commissioners also anticipate rate increases with BCBS next year.
Commissioners voted 2-1. Gary McIntosh opposed continuing the self-insurance plan through Benefit Management Insurance. They voted, 3-0, to hire Harrington Health, a Wichita health insurance consulting firm to manage the program.
Unlike typical insurance coverage plans, self-insured coverage is contained largely within the county, which collects premiums from its employees through payroll deductions. The money is then kept in an internal pool, and claims payments come from that pool.
The theory behind self-insurance is that if the county can do all of the administration on its own, it can save money that would normally go to an insurance company. A large number of employee claims within the past year prompted commissioners to consider returning to BCBS.

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