BY MATT LINDSEY

North Country This Week

OGDENSBURG -- Ogdensburg Free Academy will save about $2.4 million this year after switching health insurance providers July 1.

OFA Superintendent Kevin Kendall says the change was made as the district faced a huge budget shortfalls earlier this year, and the move created significant savings at the time.

The savings are tied to the 2019-20 school year and may not carry over into future years, Kendall said. If costs begin to go up, Kendall said school officials will shop around for the best price for employees and taxpayers.

The district switched from St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Consortium insurance, which is owned by St. Lawrence County school districts and BOCES, to Foy Benefits from Watertown. Canton Central made the same change Sept. 1.

St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES has handled the claims administration for the health insurance consortium for over 30 years.

“In our opinion, this has been a positive transition,” Kendall said. He said, “it wasn’t that we were unhappy” with BOCES Consortium, but that changes needed to be made to “have significant savings and we’ve seen positive results.”

Thomas Burns, St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES superintendent is cautioning districts considering a similar move to monitor Ogdensburg and Canton’s experiences closely and not make a short-term decision until the rates over several years can be examined.

Kendall said the nature of health care insurance is based on usage and the actual costs are unknown. He said the actual insurance coverage for those not Medicare eligible is from Excellus Blue Cross/Blue Shield for medical insurance. For Medicare eligible retirees, the Part B coverage is provided by The Hartford.

Kendall said the district is seeing its largest savings in Medicare-eligible retiree coverage. Rather than buying into full plans, OFA bought into supplemental plans.

He said the transition has been “fairly smooth,” and they are well into this plan, and “things are working out well.”

Foy Benefits has an office in the district and a representative visits Ogdensburg each Tuesday to address questions or issues from staff, or retirees. They also have a computer system and phone line for members to use as well.

BOCES Superintendent Burns said one thing is certain, “health insurance premium rates and costs will continue to increase to provide benefits to not just active employees but the burgeoning number of retirees as the majority of baby boomers exit the profession. This is not just a local but a regional, state and national problem that has so far has stymied both the public and policy makers who have sought relief.”

St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES has handled the claims administration for the health insurance consortium for over 30 years.

The consortium will be transitioning the claims processing or third party administrator function over to Excellus BCBS effective Jan. 1, according to BOCES Superintendent Burns. “The actual plan of benefits and the consortium will remain exactly as is, only the claims processing function is changing.”

All of the SLL component school superintendents have approved a consultant study of regional health insurance that should be wrapped up by the end of this calendar year.

Burns said the study should yield “good information” about comparative regional costs and plans. Local school districts can assess that study, Burns said, “as well as to learn from the experience of Canton and OFA who have left the consortium to work with the Foy agency and an Excellus plan.”