6. Health insurance/human resources consultant agreement

CASS COUNTY November 8,2013 GOVERNMENT Board of County Commissioners Cass County Government 211 9th Street South Fargo ND 58103 Re: Contract with Associated Financial Group Auditor Dear Commissioners: Michael Montplaisir,CPA 701-241-5601 On the agenda today is a proposal to renew the contract with Associated Financial Group (AFG) for another year. Under this contract, AFG will assist Cass County in Treasurer reviewing and recommending changes to our insurance benefit program, assist in creating and evaluating wellness programs, and provide advice on personnel issues as they arise. Charlotte Sandvik 701.241.5611 This is a fee for service contract. AFG will not be selling the county insurance and will not be obtaining fees from the company that administers our self-funded insurance plan Director of or from the company that sells us our stop loss insurance coverage. In both cases, the Equalization company is Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota. Frank Klein AFG will assist in looking at different plan models, such as changing deductibles, co- 701-241-5616 pays, and maximum out of pocket expenses for our plan. As more aspects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) come into play, the county may be forced to look at different plan designs to both meet the requirements of the ACA and to keep our costs within budget. AFG has the capability of looking at different plan models, and running the last year of actual claims against that model to show us how the plan design would affect both the covered individuals and the county. What may seem like a good change may look quite different when you run actual claims through the proposal. AFG has also been helping the county to develop wellness programs that do not cost the county any money. The programs, such as the walking program and the stress management program were very well received by county employees, and we hope to continue with those types of programs. We will be considering a walking program again after the new year with the goal to have a group of Cass County employees and officials participate in the 5K during the Fargo Marathon. Through the help and guidance of AFG,we developed a dedicated wellness committee that is enthusiastic. Additionally, AFG has been valuable in being a professional resource for personnel issues. When unfamiliar personnel or employee benefit issues arise we often contact AFG for their advice, their advice is usually very quick which is beneficial for administrators and employees. The cost for the contract would be paid through our self-insurance fund. Sincerely, 211 Ninth Street 2806 South uchael Montplaisir,CPA Fargo,North Dakota 58103 Cass County Auditor SUGGESTED MOTION: Fax 701.241.5728 Move to authorize the Chairman of the County Commission sign a contract with Associated www.casscountynd.gov Financial Group for professional services for 2014 in the amount of$20,000.