Report shows Vigo health insurance costs down ? Local & Bistate ...

TERRE HAUTE ? Vigo County?s self-insured health insurance costs are down more than $650,000 from last year, county commissioners learned Wednesday in a report from Anthem Insurance.

Of that total, prescription costs were down about $123,000, dipping? to $683,000 from $806,000 last year, while medical costs dropped to just over $2,785,000 from just over $3,313,000 last year, a decrease of about $528,000.

Overall, medical claims were down 16 percent. The cost paid per employee dipped 12 percent from last year, while the cost per member, which includes family members, dropped 14 percent.

Vigo County funds medical expenses up to $75,000 per person, and costs over that are then covered by Anthem.

Effective April 1, the drug Lipitor, a cholesterol-lowering drug, will not be funded by Anthem, which instead will pay for a generic drug. Switching to generic would lower monthly costs to $10 from $30 a month for county employees.

For employees who still want the name brand drug, it may be required they go through a step therapy, which uses other drugs first. Commissioners have asked Anthem if that could be a viable option when the county renews its insurance this year.

It is the first year of the county?s health plan under a new fiscal year, which runs annually from July 1 to June 30. The move was made to allow county officials to gain a clear grasp of health care costs prior to the passage of an annual county budget. The Anthem report showed expenses from Feb. 2, 2011, through Jan. 31, 2012.

Most of the lower costs comes from savings measures that include a spousal carve-out program, which removed spouses who have access to insurance at their employment; changes in deductibles; plus adding a fourth payment tier for employees on higher-cost drugs.

However, the county still has areas to improve. For example, last year there were 174 visits to hospital emergency rooms, resulting in 22 in-patient admissions.

?That is high,? Jacque Pentell, vice president for employee benefits at Forrest Sherer Insurance, which manages the county?s health plan, said of the number of ER visits.

One way to improve that number is with the implementation of a county wellness center, expected to open in April, and implementation of a wellness program.

Commissioner Paul Mason said the county is using the savings in lower health costs to construct, stock and open the wellness center in the Vigo County Annex.

?The center will probably result in more savings next year. So, if we see savings with the wellness center and from the insurance, I think that will be a big plus for Vigo County employees,? Mason said.

Howard Greninger can be reached at (812) 231-4204 or

howard.greninger@tribstar.com.

Source: http://tribstar.com/local/x1511861507/Report-shows-Vigo-health-insurance-costs-down

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