The Hernando School Board voted 4-1 on Oct. 30 to remain fully insured with Florida Blue, reversing its Sept. 22 decision to move to a self-funded health insurance model. The board made the change at a special meeting after learning that two employees were expected to have exceptionally high medical costs.
The district had moved away from Florida Blue to curb surging employee premiums. Staying with the insurer would have raised employee premiums 23.5%. Self-insurance would have held the increase to 9.9%, but it would also have put far more financial risk on the district. The board said Florida Blue told it about the two employees’ projected costs at the last minute, making the self-funded route too risky.
Board members Kayce Hawkins, Mark Johnson, and Shannon Rodriguez voted with the majority to remain with Florida Blue. Board member Susan Duval cast the lone no vote. She said the company withheld information about the projected costs until the last minute. “I feel threatened by Blue Cross,” Duval said. “They didn’t put all the cards on the table to begin with; how can I trust them down the line?”
Johnson suggested the district join other districts and explore a class action lawsuit against Florida Blue over the alleged failure to disclose the costs. Rodriguez rejected that idea. “Mark, that’s not reality,” she said. Rodriguez said self-insurance remains the best long-term option and called for building an employee health clinic. Superintendent Ray Pinder agreed with her assessment but cautioned that such a project would take time.
The board agreed to pursue a long-term goal of building an employee health clinic and ending its dependence on the insurance company.
Originally reported by Hernando Sun
