October 1 marks the beginning of Open Enrollment for your 2023 Henrico County Employee Benefits. Now is the time to assess your health and wellness needs to select which health, dental, and health savings plans will work for you and your goals.
As Henrico County Employees, we are fortunate that our employer can consistently provide remarkably high quality coverage with as minimal cost to us as possible. Over the last two years, the County did not raise its employee benefit premiums amid the pandemic and nationally rising health care costs. In fact, in an unprecedented move, Henrico absorbed the higher rates into its budget while also approving historic salary increases.
Unfortunately, with the continued increase in health care costs, employees will see a slight increase in their premiums this year. However, considering the $16 million rise in Healthcare claims in the last fiscal year alone, the successfully negotiated pharmacy contracts, and the continued excellent quality of the benefits, this additional cost is nominal. Therefore, at most, employees will only see a $10-$45 increase in the premiums, depending on the selected plans. It is also important to note that Henrico will assume 80 percent of the aggregate cost of employee healthcare premiums.
The County has again tried to mitigate the additional cost to employees as much as possible. A recent study showed “…that Henrico County’s healthcare cost coverage is considered an “outlier” as it is one of only 15 percent of organizations in the entire country that provide healthcare cost coverage at the level that Henrico does.“
While the annual increase is a natural part of business and economic growth, Henrico wants to underline the quality of these benefits and the importance of their employees. County Manager has shared, “The quality of this benefit and the support that is provided by the Board of Supervisors is a major part of what keeps Henrico an employer of choice in the region.” He has also expressed gratitude for employees and their hard work saying, “…understand that our employees are everything to the success of this County, both now and into the future. Thank you all for the extraordinary work you do.“
Please visit the 2023 Open Enrollment pages on the Employee website to learn more about the plans and benefits available. Please click on the ‘My Benefits’ icon in Oracle to participate in Open Enrollment.
