County employees could see an increase in their out-of-pocket healthcare expenses.

The Warren County supervisors during a work session Tuesday discussed possibly adopting new cost-reducing measures in light of the rise of prescription drugs costs covered under county-provided health insurance.

“Our drug plan (costs) have been going up $100,000 a year through costs and use,” county administrator John Smith said.

Two representative from MPE Employee Benefit Services out of Jackson, which manages the county’s insurance plan and serves as a reinsurer, covering health insurance costs above $60,000 per year per employee, discussed cost reducing options with the supervisors.

Bill Saint Sing of MPE said that insurance was costing “a pile of money” mostly due to prescription drugs.

“We’ve got to get this under control,” he said. “It’s frustrating because they just keep going up. It’s the reality of prescription drugs.”

MPE estimated that the county has spent $676,000 on health care this year, up from $460,000 five years ago. Bill Henley of MPE said they expect a 5 percent inflation trend going forward.

Saint Sing and Henley recommended increasing the out-of-pocket expenses limit for county employees from $3,000 per year to $3,500 per year — and possibly increasing to $4,000 in the future.

“Over the past three or four years, we’ve had all these things that the federal government dictated you had to cover and how you had to cover them,” Saint Sing said. “We’ve had all these mandates that have come down. They issue a mandate and then you have to pay for it, and it is costing everybody’s plan money.”

After explaining that prescription drugs account for 30 to 40 percent of claims for the county, they also suggested restructuring prescription copays.

Currently the county uses a three-tier system, using the cost and/or type of drug to determine the copay. For example, generic drugs currently have a $5 copay and costs rise from there. Increases in the cost of generic medicines have made the $5 copay problematic, Saint Sing said.

“I want them to pay a more appropriate copy for their drug,” he said. “Now drugs —and it’s not just generic — have gone up.”

The first option the two presented is a flat 10 or 15 percent copay on prescription drugs, saving the county approximately $55,000 to $60,000 per year, Saint Sing said.
The other option included expanding the tier system to five-tiers with a minimum $10 copay.

Saint Sing estimated that they could not put any copay changes into effect until spring.

“Obviously the drugs are a pressing issue, and you all need to think about it,” Henley said.

Saint Sing added, “We’ve got a little time to kick it around and think about it.”

Any changes to the health care plan would need to officially approved by the board, Smith said.