The meeting was called to order by Adam Goldstein at 4:03 p.m.

 

A request was made to table the quarterly EAP report which did not arrive in time for presentation at this meeting. A motion was made by Gregg Elder and seconded by Susan Lindsay to adopt the agenda as modified. The motion passed unanimously.

 

A motion was made by Susan Lindsay and seconded by Molly Ringo to approve the minutes from the November 16, 2016 meeting as written. The motion passed with the abstention of Kelly Shepherd who was absent from the November meeting.

 

Shelly talked with the group about the Aetna wellness dollars in the amount of $20,000 that will be provided in 2017 (this is a one-time only disbursement from Aetna). She shared some ideas for the use of the money including Weight Watchers incentives and possible financial wellness activities. The group discussed the options presented and expressed some concern regarding financial wellness activities and potential conflicts. Shelly said her overall goal is to increase participation in Wellness activities. The group discussed how best to maximize the wellness dollars from Aetna and potential ways to increase participation.

 

Shelly said there is a lot of buzz right now regarding mindfulness and along those lines, she would like to organize some mindfulness activities for students which will also include their teachers. She would engage a facilitator who has experience working with students. This could be tied to something meaningful for students. The group discussed this idea and provided feedback.

 

Because Aetna is an agent to the Trust, Melanie talked with the group regarding concerns related to the IRS, including monetary reimbursements to staff, and obligations of the Trust in terms of withholding and reporting to the district. Once a plan is in place for the use of the Aetna wellness dollars, Melanie will be consulted to ensure the Trust’s compliance with its financial obligations.

 

Darla provided the financials electronically but was not able to attend today’s meeting. The Trustees did not have any questions regarding the financials.

 



 

In response to an email from the Trustees representing the Association requesting a conversation about the transition to Aetna, the benefits team was asked for an update on the transition from United HealthCare to Aetna. Randi said because the December payroll has yet to be run, they did not have firm numbers of employees enrolled for coverage. The benefits team is continuing to verify employee requests to change coverage. An open enrollment update was provided at the last meeting which showed the United HealthCare plans that employees were enrolled in and the number of employees enrolled, as well as which Aetna plans employees were choosing and the number of employees choosing those plans. Overall, Randi said the questions and concerns expressed by employees regarding the switch to Aetna have not been unusual. Aetna has been very responsive throughout the implementation process. They have a very structured and organized system in place for taking on new clients.

 

Thirty-one individuals who were currently receiving benefits through United HealthCare did not enroll in one of the new Aetna plans. If those individuals did not communicate with the benefits team, they were defaulted to the Core Plan. Cris explained the communication that was provided to these individuals which included information that if they did not choose a plan for 2017, they would be defaulted to Aetna’s Core Plan. She said most employees who had been waiving coverage continued to do so. Nine employees who had previously waived coverage in 2016 and did not make a selection during this year’s open enrollment were defaulted to the Aetna Core Plan. The benefits team has reached out to these individuals and has been working with each of them. Debbie said there are some issues with Employee Online related to waiving coverage that is confusing to employees. They are working on this and hope to have the issues worked out in the future.

 

The benefits team was asked if employees contacted them who thought they were choosing something but it was not what they wanted. They reported that many employees called during open enrollment to make sure they had selected correctly. Many employees also attended and asked questions at the help sessions. Once the employee made their selection, an email was generated back to them. They are working with any individual who is not satisfied with their choice.

 

The group discussed concerns regarding the sharing of information. Some felt that their questions were still not being answered. The benefits team said they were not intentionally withholding any information but were being cognizant to not share confidential information. Randi said that she had heard from many association presidents and representatives that the transition to Aetna went well for their members. Overall, she felt the process went very well. Adam said he would agree but tension arose on their end and it became hard to know what was going on. Their concern was how information was being shared and disseminated, not the actual transition itself. The group discussed past open enrollments and noted it is hard to get up-to-date, accurate data until things are sorted out in January.

 

A question was asked about other employees who might be dealing with issues in this area. Debbie said they are dealing with each case as they are reported and making adjustments as they can. Susan asked if there are employees unsatisfied with what they got or are not happy that they were defaulted to the Core Plan. Randi said there are always a few employees who are dissatisfied and they will most likely hear about more issues in January. The benefits team is working with each individual case who are unhappy with the coverage they chose/received and are doing the best they can to provide them with fair choices.

 

 

 

The benefits team has a plan and process in place for questions that will come in January. They are actively monitoring identified individuals who were not satisfied with their coverage. The group discussed plans for communication over winter break. They will have a voicemail message with information and a number to call at Aetna if they did not receive their new insurance card. The Trustees thanked the benefits team for their hard work during open enrollment.

 

This item will be discussed at a future meeting.

 

The Trustees discussed agenda items for the January 18, 2017 meeting. Additional items for the next meeting include:

·   Communication on behalf of the Trust

o   Use of the Trust

o   Use of individual Trustee names

The regular meeting was adjourned to executive session by Adam Goldstein at 5:10 p.m. The Trustees discussed a legal matter.

 

The regular meeting was reconvened by Adam Goldstein at 5:47 p.m. and adjourned at 5:50 p.m.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

 

Kelly Shepherd (in the absence of Jeff Moore)

Secretary

 

kn

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