County board select new health insurance plan for county, employees
Health insurance costs to Codington County and its employees will increase by 5.2% in 2024 compared to 2023, according to information released Tuesday at the county commission meeting.
Sanford Health Plan, brokered through Kranz Insurance of Watertown, will again be the county’s provider. One notable change in 2024 is the option for employees to establish a health savings account (HSA).
Both single and family plans will offer the option of $1,000, $2,000 and $4,000 deductibles. The HSA accounts can only be established with the $4,000 deductible choice.
Individuals who select the $1,000 deductible will pay a monthly premium of $19.15. The county will pay premiums of $855.25 for those selecting the $2,000 deductible or $671.64 for the $4,000 deductible premium.
The monthly premiums for families are $760.38 for the $1,000 option, $538.12 for the $2,000 option and $79.11 for the $4,000 option.
Jamie Riley of Kranz Insurance provided information to the commissioners, who voted unanimously to select the Sanford Health Plan and then to determine the employee/county premium payment split.
A portion of the commissioners’ discussion Tuesday was about the Florence School District’s request for additional stop signs in the City of Florence. The school district is opening a new building that sits across the street from its main structure and is seeking additional safety for students.
The commissioners were fine with placing signs on county roads but wanted to know who would foot the bill. Highway Superintendent Rick Hartley has been in touch with Florence school officials and has a follow-up meeting with the school principal about the installation of 5 stop signs.
Hartley received permission from the commission to prepare the sign sites while the ground is unfrozen.
Also during his monthly report, Hartley said his crews are working to replace gravel on certain roads. He said the dry summer resulted in roads losing more gravel than usual. And he told commissioners that paving of County Road 23 will be delayed until 2024.
Facilities Manager Steve Mohlengraaf told commissioners he’s looking for a couple volunteers from each county department to undergo training on the use of an automatic external defibrillator. He also said the county has been reimbursed by its insurer for young trees spaded into Memorial Park earlier this fall. He said the trees are doing well.
In an unsavory note, Mohlengraaf said county jail inmates recently used shredded bedding to clog toilets and also smeared feces on walls.
Actions on other agenda items included:
Authorizing applications for state Bridge Improvement Grants for bridges on County Road 2 west of South Shore ($595,240 total cost), County Road 6 a mile west of Dakota Sioux Casino ($499,455) and County Road 3 south of Waverly ($233,910). If approved, payment for repairs would be an 80/20 state/county split.
Authorized a bid of $77,815 to Source Well for a new dump truck body with an attached snowplow hitch.
Approved a job shadowing application from a Lake Area Technical College student in human services for job shadowing in the county’s Welfare Office.
Before going into executive session, the commissioners noted the death of Watertown attorney Thomas Burns, 68, who died Saturday, Nov. 18 in a traffic accident near Silver Lake, Minnesota. The commissioners offered thoughts and prayers for Burns’ wife Carolyn who was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
— J.T. Fey is a freelance reporter for the Watertown Public Opinion.
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: County board select new health insurance plan for county, employees
