Kane begins push to get employees into less expensive health care plans

Kane County will try to shift as many employees as possible into less costly versions of their health care plans in the first part of a plan to keep the county's insurance increases as low as possible.

To do that, each county employee must meet with human resources staff to review health plan options. There will be no automatic renewal of benefits. Piggybacking on that will be an audit of every person on the insurance plan, including family members of employees, to ensure coverage qualifications are being met.

The county does not check every year to make sure everyone is following the rules for coverage under the plan.

"We don't do it every year," Human Resources Executive Director Sheila McCraven said Wednesday. "We basically use an honor system around here."

The answer seemed to surprise some county board members, including Mark Davoust.

"It is our duty to have people in the plan that are supposed to be in the plan," Davoust said. "(And verifying) should be done every year."

McCraven agreed. An outside firm must be hired to conduct the audit.

Once complete, there will be negotiations with the unions to further reduce the county's health insurance cost increases. If the unions agree to everything the county is requesting, officials believe the county will only see a 2 percent increase in insurance costs.