Education eases employee concerns when changing health carriers

People are creatures of habit, and therefore have difficulty with change. When it comes to employee benefits being modified, this change is amplified because of the personal impact and the confusing technical nature of insurance.

As the NCACC's Group Benefits Pool modified its business model to transform itself to the County Health Plan, Marcenda Rogers, human resources director for Northampton County, took on her own initiative: to educate and inform county employees so there would be a complete understanding of the benefits that would become effective July 2007, and to learn of employees' questions and concerns.

Rogers operated under the belief that if county employees were kept in the loop about changes being made, they would have a better understanding why those changes were needed.

Following the transition to the County Health Plan in July 2006, Rogers had two main audiences to address: the county commissioners, who needed to be updated on the Group Benefits Pool changes and see supporting evidence for the benefits change, and the county employees, who needed to know the driving factors behind the change from a 100 percent co-insurance plan to a 90 percent plan.

But before the Board of Commissioners made the decision to remain in the Pool, management had already considered the long-term impact that the County Health Plan would have on employees. At the board's request, Rogers researched benefits provided to employees in other North Carolina counties. She surveyed all 100 counties and reviewed data on the overall cost of healthcare in the United States and North Carolina. Her findings revealed that Northampton offered the best benefits in the state with a 90 percent co-insurance – employees paid less toward healthcare benefits where co-insurance applied.

The majority of counties in the County Health Plan offer an 80 percent co-insurance with an out-of-pocket amount for in- and out-of-network coverage. The detailed report that Rogers produced for commissioners allowed her to make her case to the board using supporting documentation, rather than an opinion. The data also helped county employees to better understand the reasons for the change. Each employee was provided with a synopsis of the report on healthcare benefits, as well as Northampton's situation.

Rogers said her biggest challenge turned out to be helping employees make the distinction between the county making benefits changes and the NCACC Pool switching to CIGNA for claims payable. Once Rogers had completed her educational initiative, employees realized their coverage had always been through the NCACC, and that the county made the co-insurance change to continue to make insurance affordable for all employees.

Rogers continues to give employees empowerment by welcoming their feedback on the plan. This year through a series of employee benefits meetings facilitated by representatives from the NCACC, CIGNA and Caremark, Rogers gave employees the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about their benefits – an avenue that helps employees to formulate their own opinion on the plan based on facts, rather than fear.