No health plan mediation request coming from county

Rock County will not join with other Southwest Health and Human Services members to mediate a state health insurance plan decision.
Nancy Walker, SWHHS deputy director, informed commissioners Aug. 6 about the DHS decision to give income-eligible Rock County residents three possible choices for health care coverage.
SWHHS and other member counties preferred to have one or two options.
“Our executive team is a little taken back — typically we have two plans,” Walker said. “Interesting that is what they are recommending for children and families but for adult programs, they are recommending three plans.”
Walker was uncertain how many Rock County residents are eligible for the state programs but was concerned about how SWHHS staff would cope with the extra workload that a third insurance option could generate.
“We are not sure that just having a couple of workers (two in Rock County) doing the program will work if we have to expand to additional plans,” she said.
The state will not release the names of the possible plan offerings in Rock County until after the mediation process.
The state conducts its health plan procurement process every five years.
In 2012 Rock County joined other SWHHS counties to form Southern Prairie Community Care, an integrated health partnership that sought to improve health care delivery services to income-eligible residents.
Last year projected financial shortfalls forced the joint-powers partnership to dissolve, a move that is expected to be complete in 2020.
Of the SWHHS members, Rock and Murray counties chose not to join PrimeWest Health Services, an existing 13-county managed health care insurance provider, earlier this year due to the almost $950,000 necessary to join the organization.
SWHHS member counties of Nobles, Redwood, Lincoln and Lyon voted to become PrimeWest members. Pipestone County is already a member.
All SWHHS members except Rock County filed for mediation with DHS officials over the selected health plan options.
Commissioners saw no need to talk about options they advocated for on behalf of eligible residents.
“We are finally getting what we have asked for a long, long time,” said County Administrator Kyle Oldre.
“There was a big beef that rural Minnesota has limited choices. So DHS has worked very hard on our behalf along with Rep. (Joe) Schomacker sitting on the board saying, ‘Look, insurance companies, you guys need to work hard to make sure outstate Minnesota or Greater Minnesota, whatever we are called this week, is covered.’
“Is it really appropriate for those same counties to go back and say, ‘We really didn’t mean that.’?”
Counties had until Aug. 15 (today) to request mediation with a three-member panel.