The Kenai City Council authorized contracts for employee healthcare and other benefits effective on July 1st. As part of a comprehensive employee benefit package, and pursuant to Kenai Municipal Code, the city provides group medical, dental, vision, life, and supplemental life insurance to its employees. The current provider for group medical, dental and vision is Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska and UNUM for both life and supplemental life insurance.
Kenai Finance Director Terry Eubank:
“Our number one goal in this is to maintain the quality or maintain a high quality benefit package for employees. It’s crucial for recruitment. It’s crucial for retention. That’s always one of our biggest concerns going in. this year, when we approached Premera, they came back initially with a 12% renewal increase on the health side. Honestly, we don’t talk about dental usually at that point, that’s a pretty small piece of this puzzle. At the end, they came back with what is termed a no bid offer, so what that does is if we choose to accept the offer then we commit that we won’t go to the market and solicit other carriers. That no bid offer came back at 8 ½ % on the health side and 3% on the dental side. Honestly, because of timing, with the fact that this policy goes into effect July 1, what the administration is recommending is to go ahead and select Premera. We’re doing it more or less on an interim basis.”
The City Manager is authorized to execute a contract with Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska to provide group medical insurance, group dental insurance and group vision insurance for an estimated premium of $3,149,602. A contract with UNUM would provide life and supplemental life insurance for city employees for an estimated premium of $20,587. Council also authorizes funding an employee only HRA at $1,800 including $1,650 for group medical deductible and prescription copay and $150 for vision related expenses.
Resolution 2021-38 passed the Kenai City Council.