EDWARDSVILLE – Edwardsville City employees may need to add a 4.97 percent health coverage increase to their 2021 budget.
The finance committee voted on Tuesday to renew workers’ health insurance. Working with Cornerstone Insurance Group, the city’s insurance broker and benefits advisor, city officials sent extension offers to Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, the Illinois Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and the Health Alliance. Aetna did not respond and the Health Alliance’s response was deemed uncompetitive.
Of the offers received, Cigna’s was the best option. Medical care would remain the same, as would dental care and eyesight, with no increase in these two areas.
As of 2008, the city has deployed four different insurance carriers – UnitedHealthcare (2008, 2017); Blue Cross, Blue Shield of Illinois (2009-2010); Coventry (2011-2016); and Cigna since 2018.
HR director Amanda Tucker said in 2017 that when the city used the Blue Cross for a year there was a litany of complaints about the service that prompted the move to Cigna in 2018.
Tucker said the city’s budget this year will be $ 128,919. She also noted that Cigna originally wanted an 18 percent increase which they negotiated to just under five percent. Last year, Cigna proposed a 25 percent increase, but ended up increasing it by 10 percent.
As part of Cigna’s new PPO plan, staff costs show the increases. Employee and spouse amounts increased nearly $ 4, and children added more than $ 2. Family coverage increases by more than $ 6. Under the HSA plan, the hikes are steeper: $ 9.61 for employees and spouses, $ 7.21 for children, and $ 15.95 for families.
“For the second year running, there have been relatively few complaints with Cigna as a freight forwarder,” said Tucker.
Only Cigna offers a wellness program, which Tucker says is used by employees.
Mayor Hal Patton asked if the deductible was a major benefit the city has chosen to maintain Cigna, as the city is picking up part of the deductible from the group health insurance company. Tucker agreed. Cigna’s deductible is the same as last year – $ 750. United suggested a deductible of $ 3,000 while Blue Cross offered a deductible of $ 2,500.
This point will be forwarded to the entire city council on November 17th.
In another action, the committee unanimously voted to purchase a 2021 Ford Transit T-150 for the sewer division of the Public Works Department for $ 25,245. This is an un-budgeted expense. Public Works Director Eric Williams advocated paying with a city manager-approved transfer as the amount is less than 10 percent of the fund. He said a project at the wastewater treatment plant was now being delayed due to a phosphorus study requested by the state environmental protection agency. Williams tried to pay for the van using the funds originally earmarked for the project.
This van would become the department’s new sewer vehicle, housing and transporting the sewer department’s inspection camera system. The camera equipment inspects and documents plumbing and storm sewer conditions across the city.
The current vehicle is a 1995 Ford E-350 Ambulance that was overtaken by the fire department with 110,000 miles in 2012. While it now has 130,000 miles on the clock, Williams said mileage isn’t the main problem. The vehicle failed its most recent state inspection by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The cabin brackets rusted on the frame, the anti-lock braking system (ABS) are not functional and parts for them are no longer available. The other problem is the accumulated “idle hours” that the device has while parking while the cameras do their work.
Williams said he was hoping to get out of the vehicle for another four years before filing for a replacement, but the department had invested $ 2,500 a year which he couldn’t continue doing. The new vehicle will be a little more economical in terms of fuel consumption, will be in a lower weight class (1/2 ton versus 1 ton), better suited for work and will not require a third party inspection. Williams said all city vehicles that are 1 tonne or more must be inspected by a third party.
The application went to the city’s public services committee on Tuesday, which also voted unanimously in favor of the purchase. It will be put to vote on November 17th before the full council.
Call reporter Charles Bolinger at 618-359-5735
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