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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-03-14 - Request for Proposals - Employee Benefits Insurance Brokerage and ConsultingCity of Tukwila Request for Proposal Employee Benefits Insurance Brokerage & Consulting Services Due: Monday, March 14, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) The full RFP follows this document. Questions received by the City of Tukwila as of March 3, 2022 regarding its Healthcare Broker Request for Proposals. Responses are included below. 1. Why are you out to bid for a new benefits consultant? The City has a practice of going to the marketplace for broker services every three years. 2. What are you getting from your current consultant that you value and like? Comprehensive benefits analysis, usage and recommendations for long-term sustainability. 3. What are you not getting from your current consultant that you would like to have? The City is looking to the marketplace to see what is available. 4. How do you communicate benefits to your employees: paper, email, Intraweb posting, etc. What is the most effective pathway? All City Email from Human Resources, Hot Topics (which is a bi-weekly email from administration featuring summary of key issues happening in the City), Intraweb Sharepoint, in-person new employee orientation events, and other one-on-one communications such as the department standups. 5. What specific materials (benefit guide, summaries, decision guides, power point or Prezi, open enrollment meetings (in-person or virtual)), you do provide your employees during open enrollment? What about during onboarding? What other communication materials would you require from your consultant throughout the year? Benefit guide (emailed with final offer to candidates), post on open enrollment website, present benefits in person during benefits orientation and provide 1:1 customer service as needed. We have the SBC (summary of benefits and coverage) which is attached to benefits portal and SBD (summary plan document) if people ask for specific exclusions etc. We also are provided with a City of Tukwila Rates and Benefits document and a Kaiser EOC (evidence of coverage). 6. How do your employees currently enroll or make changes to their benefit elections (either as a new hire or during open enrollment)? If online, what is the name of your system? What is your HRIS/Payroll platform? Currently we use Everything Benefits as the enrollment portal, however looking to determine if new systems we are bringing online will be able to better streamline this process. Our HRIS is through NEOGOV and Payroll is done through Finance Enterprise through Central Square. 7. What is the employee enrollment split between your Kaiser and HMA medical plans? The majority is through Healthcare Management Administrators, only 15 employees are on Kaiser. 8. Is your benefit committee a decision making body, or do they provide advice, and decisions are made by City leadership? How many meetings of the Committee would your consultant be required to attend per year, if any? What about with other City representatives, outside of our normal consulting services with your HR and Finance teams? Our Healthcare committee meets once a year; more if benefit plan changes are contemplated. There is the potential for the consultant to present to the City Council once a year; other meetings are more general ones with HR and Finance staff. 9. What is your internal decision making process for renewals? What about for new vendors and benefit changes? Our normal internal renewal process is a collaboration between City administration, HR and Finance. If major plan changes are needed, then a larger process would be implemented. Benefit changes would need to go through the Healthcare committee. The last time the City made major benefit changes this process took many months. 10. Is your consultant involved in your union negotiations in any way? Do you bargain benefit levels, or employer contributions, or both? Tukwila has just recently moved to attempting to achieve cost sharing with our labor partners. Previously, the City has paid 100% of both employees and dependents' healthcare costs. Two (relatively small) unions have now agreed to 90% cost share for dependents, one (larger) union has agreed to a spousal surcharge. Four bargaining units up for renewal this year. Primary role for the consultant is to provide the City's negotiating team with data and information. The Healthcare Committee referenced above is made up of representatives of each of the City's nine labor unions and one non -represented staff representative. This group bargained plan changes approximately six years ago (co -pays, specialty services, etc.) but current climate may not allow for similar bargaining of plan levels collectively as was previously achieved, though that process took more than one year. 11. What are the names and positions of those who will be evaluating, and making decisions on, your benefits consultant selection? David Cline, City Administrator; Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator; Vicky Carlsen, Finance Director; Tim Rhyne, Chief People Officer (starts 3/16); and Jean Carlson, Senior HR Analyst. 12. Is there an intent to respond request? If not, please consider this email our formal intent to respond. No. 13. Will answers to questions be shared with all respondents? Yes. 14. Will results of the marketing be shared with all respondents? The marketing for this RFP was done through the Seattle Times, Daily Journal of Commerce and on the City's website. 15. Please describe the City's top concerns relative to the next three years of providing employee benefits. Rising cost of healthcare and long-term sustainability of the fund. 16. How long has HMA been the TPA? Approximately since 1991. 17. Who is the Stop Loss carrier? Symetra 18. How often is the stop loss marketed? It is marketed every year. 19. When was the last review of the PBM? Unsure as of this writing. 20. What cost containment strategies have been implemented? Some plan design changes implemented approximately six years ago. See answer to #10 above as well. 21. Is a wellness program in place currently? Yes. 22. How many meetings a year are generally scheduled for the Benefits committee? Our Healthcare committee meets once a year; more if benefit plan changes are contemplated. 23. How many meetings a year are generally scheduled with the Executive Leadership team? 6-8 per year. There is the potential for the consultant to present to the City Council once a year; other meetings general ones with HR and Finance staff. 24. Will the City consider a fee that is tied to performance? Potentially, though a fee tied to performance would need to go both ways. City of Tukwila Request for Proposal Employee Benefits Insurance Brokerage & Consulting Services Due: Monday, March 14, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) The City of Tukwila invites you to respond to a Request for Proposal (RFP) for brokerage services for our health insurance plans and ancillary employee benefit plans. The purpose of this RFP is to solicit proposals from consultants experienced in benefits plan administration, financial analysis, monitoring, planning and compliance of self-insured benefits programs. Please review the full RFP following this notice Responses are due no later than Monday, March 14, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Respondents must submit one electronic copy (either flash drive or email), and ten (10) paper copies of their proposal, including references from three (3) clients of similar size and nature as Tukwila to: City of Tukwila Attn: Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator 6200 Southcenter Blvd. Tukwila, WA 98188 Rachel.Bianchi@tukwilawa.qov Proposals must be received at the address above on or before the deadline. Responses received after such time will be disqualified. The City will not be liable for delays in delivery of proposals due to handling by the US Postal Service or any other type of delivery services. Please reference the RFP title on all communications and mailing labels. "Employee Benefits Insurance Brokerage & Consulting Services." Questions regarding the proposal will be accepted by email ONLY to Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator at Rachel.Bianchittukwilawa.gov. Questions received after March 14, 2022 may not be answered. Published Seattle Times — February 14, 2022 Published Daily Journal of Commerce — February 14, 2022 City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator Allan Ekberg,, Mayor City of Tukwila Request for Proposal Employee Benefits Insurance Brokerage & Consulting Services PURPOSE & SCOPE OF WORK The City of Tukwila (City) invites you to respond to a Request for Proposal (RFP) for brokerage services for our health insurance plans and ancillary employee benefit plans. This document includes brief information about the City's benefits, instructions and deadlines for submitting a proposal, and an RFP questionnaire. The purpose of this RFP is to solicit proposals from consultants experienced in benefits plan administration, financial analysis, monitoring, planning and compliance of self-insured benefits programs. The scope of work for this project is attached as Attachment A and shall be incorporated into this RFP by this reference. ABOUT OUR PLANS The City provides a comprehensive and affordable benefits program for approximately 345 benefit eligible employees working 20 or more hours per week. Benefits include a self-funded medical, prescription, dental, and vision plan administered through Third Party Administrative services from Healthcare Management Administrators (HMA) and Elixir. We also offer a fully -insured medical plan with Kaiser Permanente. The health plans are managed through the City's Human Resources Director and designated human resources staff with strong involvement of our union representatives. The City also provides a separate self-funded medical, prescription, dental and vision plan to police and firefighter retirees who are members of the Law Enforcement Officers and Firefighters Plan 1 (LEOFF 1), also administered through HMA and Elixir. The plan is coordinated with Medicare Part B secondary payer rules and is governed in accordance with King County LEOFF Board rules. • As of January 1, 2022, there are 883 active employees and family members enrolled in the medical plans including 32 LEOFF 1 Retirees. • The City pays 100% of the monthly premiums for all coverage tiers, except for regular part-time employees that have a pro -rated cost share. The City is currently negotiating with our labor partners to work on a premium share model of 100/90. • The 2022 budgeted IBNR reserve is $1,800,000 • The 2022 stop loss deductible is currently set at $185,000. • Benefit plans run on a calendar year. Page 1 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator Allan Ekberg,, Mayor • The City of Tukwila works collaboratively with our Healthcare Committee, made up of labor and management representatives, to find successful health insurance outcomes with consideration of cost savings measures. • The self-funded plans are not grandfathered under the Affordable Care Act. • The self-funded plans have been in place with the City for over 25 years. Ancillary benefit plans include employer paid and voluntary Group Life and Long -Term Disability plans currently through Standard Insurance Company, Flexible Spending Accounts currently through Benefit Administration Company, and HRA/VEBA accounts currently through Gallagher. HMA MEDICAL KAISER PERMANENTE MEDICAL Overall Deductible: $100 individual/$300 family. Copay: $25 primary care, $40 specialists. OOP Max Medical: $375 individual/$1175 family. OOP Max Rx: $1500 individual/$4500 family Overall Deductible: $0 Copay: $10 primary care and specialist OOP Max Medical: $2000 individual/$4000 family. HMA DENTAL/VISION Dental $2000 calendar year maximum (does not apply to individuals under the age of 19). Incentive Benefit Periods 70%, 80%, 90%, 100% Vision Hardware — Age 19 and Older (excludes Teamsters represented staff of approx. 152) 100% covered up to $250 individual and $500 family per calendar year. Routine Vision Exam covered under medical. HMA LEOFF 1 RETIREE MEDICAL and DENTAL/VISION Medical: Overall Deductible $100. Copay $0. OOP Max $375. Dental: No deductible, unlimited coverage excluding cosmetic procedures. Vision: Benefit limited to $800 annual maximum. Page 2 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator Allan Ekberg,, Mayor PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS Please answer all RFP questions and provide any relevant supplementary information or exhibits demonstrating how you meet or exceed the scope of work requirements outlined in Attachment A. Questions/Inquiries: If you have questions concerning the RFP or our selection process, your questions should be submitted to Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator, via email to rachel.bianchi@tukwilawa.gov. No questions will be accepted verbally or in any written format other than email. Questions received after March 14th, 2022 may not be answered. Please do not contact the insurance markets. Presently, we are only seeking background information on your firm and ideas on how you would serve our City. Proposed Timeline: The City anticipates selection of a consultant in Q2 2022. Due Date/Time: Responses are due no later than Monday, March 14th, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Respondents must submit one electronic copy (either flash drive or email), and ten (10) paper copies of their proposal, including references from three (3) clients of similar size and nature as Tukwila to: City of Tukwila Attn: Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator 6200 Southcenter Blvd. Tukwila, WA 98188 Rachel.bianchi@tukwilawa.gov Proposal must be received at the address above on or before the deadline. Responses received after such time will be disqualified. All costs for developing proposals in response to this RFP are the obligation of the Consultant and are not chargeable to the City. All proposals and accompanying documentation will become property of the City and will not be returned. Proposals may be withdrawn at any time prior to the published close date, provided notification is received in writing to the above listed City agent. Proposals cannot be withdrawn after the published close date. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE NOTICE All materials provide by the Consultant are subject to Washington State public disclosure laws. Marking the entire proposal as proprietary or confidential, and therefore, exempt form disclosure will NOT be accepted or honored, and may result in disclosure of the entire proposal or disqualification of the proposal solely at the discretion of the City. Documents identified as confidential or proprietary will not be treated as such if: public disclosure laws take precedence, the information is publicly available, the information is in possession of the City, the information is obtained from third parties, without Page 3 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator Allan Ekberg,, Mayor restrictions on disclosure, or the information was independently developed without reference to the confidential information. SELECTION & AWARD The City reserves the right to reject any Proposal, which is in any way incomplete or irregular, and to waive irregularities and informalities in the submittal and evaluation process. Furthermore, the RFP does not obligate the City to accept or contract for any expressed or implied services. In making a decision to award a contract, the City may consider any and all factors and information which the City feels has bearing on the decision. The final decision is the sole decision of the City of Tukwila and the respondents to this request have no appeal rights or procedures guaranteed to them. The City reserves the right to request clarification of information submitted, and to request additional information from any firm. Acceptance of a proposal is contingent upon the successful agreement and execution of the City's standard Consulting Services Agreement. The City anticipates a minimum3 year contract. Any successful firm must be licensed to do business in the State of Washington, the City of Tukwila and must have a state Unified Business Identifier (UBI) number. In addition, the successful firm must not be debarred, suspended, or otherwise ineligible to contract with the City. The City of Tukwila embraces civil rights and equal opportunity. If any events occur involving the firm that would violate those rights, then the firm shall take full responsibility for said actions. All interested parties are requested to provide a response containing all required elements herein to the City of Tukwila at the stated address by the deadline given. The City intends to enter into an agreement with the Consultant who provides a proposal that, in the opinion of the City in its sole discretion, best meets all of the below listed evaluation criteria (receives the highest score) as determined by a selection committee. Further, the City reserves the right to conduct interviews with selected respondents as necessary to complete its evaluation. Evaluation Criteria Weight Experience (experience with projects of a similar size and nature) 30 pts Proposed Fees/Costs 20 pts Qualifications (ability to perform the work outlined in Attachment A) 20 pts References (from three clients of similar size and nature) 20 pts Number of public sector clients 10 pts Total 100 Page 4 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator RFP QUESTIONAIRRE Allan Ekberg,, Mayor A. Your Company We would like to learn about your firm. 1. Describe your company including local environment, organizational structure, and number and type of consultants. 2. Tell us about the profile of your clientele for the local office. i. How many employers are small under 200, mid -market 200-2500, and large? ii. How many are self-insured and fully insured? iii. How many are public sector and private sector? 3. Who are the top three health plan carriers or networks that you use and what percent of your clients are in each? B. Consulting Team Tell us about the team proposed to handle our account. 1. Please provide the bios and experience of the team. 2. Provide the profile of accounts that are handled by this team. 3. How do you handle turnover or replacement of service team members? 4. What is your firm's process for ensuring customer satisfaction? C. Strategic Planning What is your model for strategic planning? 1. Tell us about your approach to forecasting and setting rates and funding levels. 2. Describe your approach to building strategies based on cost and employee satisfaction. 3. Describe your recommended approach for evaluating and managing high cost claims. D. Compliance Tell us how you help in our obligations to be compliant with State and Federal requirements, including your experience related to requirements for government employers in Washington. 1. How do you provide compliance information, examples are helpful. 2. Does your firm have in-house legal counsel or contract for such services? 3. Do you perform compliance audits of our plans? 4. Do you provide a review of plan documents independent of carriers? 5. How do you assist clients with HIPAA awareness and compliance? 6. Do you provide service or support with 1095 reporting? 7. Do you provide service or support with COBRA administration? Page 5 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator RFP QUESTIONAIRRE (Continued) Allan Ekberg,, Mayor E. Annual Renewals Describe your process for annual renewals, including timelines. 1. How do you assist in selecting the proper risk profile with regard to stop loss? 2. What is your philosophy on frequency of going to market with plans? 3. Describe your experience with evaluating ancillary plans, such as life and disability. F. Reporting Tell us about your reporting methods and frequency. 1. Provide samples of monthly, quarterly, and/or annual reports. 2. Would your analysis include actuarial review of our utilization? 3. Do you have benchmark data to assist us in understanding our utilization patterns? What is the source of this data and how is it used? G. Participant Advocacy Plan Participants occasionally have difficulty understanding coverage or claim payments, and errors do occur. The City has a strong commitment to ensuring our employees receive excellent customer service and support in claims advocacy. 1. Do you provide direct participant customer service? 2. If so, please describe the services provided and how you measure satisfaction around participant customer service. 3. If you do not, what other options do you recommend to your clients? H. Scope of Services and Price We are interested in the opportunity to purchase services that meet our needs, within our budget. Please provide a detailed list of services and pricing, broken out with the minimum scope or "standard services" and pricing, separate from any additional or optional services that you offer, along with pricing. I. Additional Information What else would you like us to know about your firm and the services you provide? Page 6 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator ATTACHMENT A DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES/SCOPE OF WORK Allan Ekberg,, Mayor Specific responsibilities of the selected firm will include, but will not be limited to, the following: A. Plan Administration • Provide insurance brokerage and advisory services associated with employee benefit plans. This includes acting as an intermediary on the City's behalf with the underwriting community, conducting marketing activities, analyzing options and proposing recommendations, assisting the City in administering group insurance plans, responding to questions from and providing information to staff representatives, settling claim disputes, and other oversight services during the course of the programs. • Represent the City in all negotiations with carriers on all issues including those related to premiums, benefit levels, plan design and special terms and conditions. • Assist the City with the implementation of new programs including alternate funding arrangement or changes to existing programs, which may include attending various onsite meetings. • Assist with benefits committee meetings as needed. • Meet with and provide reports to various City representatives, when requested by the City, including the City Council, administration, employee groups, and staff. • Provide a central resource for documenting activities surrounding the delivery of benefits. The resource includes benefit plan objectives, current and historical plan data, documentation of plan issues and decisions, efficiency of renewal processes, and appropriate federal and state plan compliance. • Review benefit designs and provide recommendations on all health and welfare benefits to provide cost management and savings to the City. • Provide input and recommendations on any mandated benefit design changes. • Manage plan changes with vendors as necessary. • Provide leadership with carrier relationship management. • Assist with contract and policy review. B. Financial Analysis, Monitoring and Planning • Define objectives and initiatives through strategic planning to assist the City in controlling/reducing health plan expenditures while retaining a competitive benefits program. • Regularly review claims experience, claims service, and claims administration to ensure maximum benefit to the City. • Analyze factors driving the City's plan costs and recommend opportunities to better manage costs, access and quality. Determine and recommend the most economical funding methods for the benefit programs. • Conduct strategic planning sessions to review performance of the City's current employee benefits coverage and establish future objectives and strategies to manage the employee benefit coverage. • Meet with and provide reports to various City representatives as required on an as -needed basis to discuss strategy and new issues. Page 7 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator Allan Ekberg,, Mayor • Assist the City with the implementation and communication of new programs or changes to existing programs, which will include attending and presenting information at Open Enrollment meetings. • Research and advise the City of any new developments in the law and employee benefit programs on an ongoing basis. • As requested, prepare bid specifications and solicit proposals for insurance markets which specialize in group insurance plans or self-funded programs as needed. Evaluate bids and bidders, including administration, claim payment procedures, customer service, provider networks, reserve establishment policies, financial soundness, and identifying the most cost -beneficial package from the various bidders. • Interface with insurance carriers as needed to assist the City in the resolution of problems associated with the benefit programs. • Provide market data and recommendations for implementation of benefits and programs as requested. • Establish comprehensive claims reports for identified coverage such as medical and pharmacy, detailing paid claims (and reimbursements, if applicable), premium/funding and enrollment summaries. • Provide ongoing quarterly analysis of plan financial experience. • Provide annual financial reporting • Compare premium rates and employee contributions to local, regional or state public sector norms. • Provide assistance in calculation of plan funding rates and prospective employee contributions. • Coordinate annual actuarial analysis to recommend funding rates for the City's self-insured plans and to produce a three-year budget projection. C. Compliance • Provide updates and ongoing assistance with federal and state reporting and compliance as required by outside agencies. Assist the City in complying with all related Federal and State laws and regulations, as well as, contract requirements. • Research and advise the City on changes in statutes, rules, and regulations regarding the City's responsibility under federal and state laws and develop procedures to ensure its benefit programs are in good legal standing. • Research and advise the City regarding legal issues; represent the City in legal matters as appropriate, in partnership with the City attorney. D. Employee Communications & Claims Resolution Support • Provide custom communications, online tools, and other interactive services so participants understand their employee benefits and the value thereof. • Provide employee assistance for claims resolution through a Benefit Advocate service. • Coordinate with City representatives on employee relations issues concerning group insurance and benefit programs. Page 8 of 9 City of Tukwila City of Tukwila Administrative Services Department - Rachel Bianchi, Deputy City Administrator E. Annual Renewals Allan Ekberg,, Mayor • Represent the City in negotiations with carriers on all issues, including those related to premiums, benefit levels, plan design and special terms and conditions. • Provide funding rates for renewal year for active employees, retirees, and COBRA participants. • Prepare Requests for Proposals (RFP's) for City benefit plans, including alternative funding arrangements. This includes evaluating the responses and recommending changes to the City based on the RFP findings. • Develop Summaries of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) • Assist with preparation of Summary Plan Descriptions (SPD) • Conduct annual competitive bidding for stop loss and present renewal options. • Act as an advocate of the employees and City in resolving difficult claims and administrative problems Page 9 of 9 City of Tukwila