Getting your Trinity Audio player ready…
As a means to reduce future spending, Kane County is removing coverage of weight-loss drugs from its employees’ health insurance plans starting in 2027
While the suggestion — which has been touted by county staff as having the potential for significant savings for the county — has generated considerable discussion among the Kane County Board since it was initially brought up, a measure to implement the change was ultimately approved narrowly in a vote at the board’s regular meeting on Tuesday
Kane County has been facing a looming budget shortfall in its general fund in recent years, which its board has been solving since 2023 by dipping into the county’s cash reserves
But, county staff has cautioned that doing so won’t be an option forever, and that the county must make significant cuts or find new revenue before 2027 to avoid dipping into its required 90-day reserves
That’s left the board with the task of finding new revenue or cutting costs to avoid spending down its reserve funds
One possible solution was a 0.75% sales tax referendum question, but that was overwhelmingly shot down by voters in 2025
Then, last year, in the wake of the referendum question’s failure, the board considered and implemented various ways to help balance its budget. But the board ultimately ended up using about $6 million in cash reserves to balance the fiscal year 2026 budget, down from about $27 million used to balance the county’s budget the year prior
This year, the county board has affirmed its intention to use little to no reserves to balance the county’s fiscal year 2027 budget, tasking members with finding other ways to balance it
Also on Tuesday, the board moved to put on display a draft budget for the year, which is thus far balanced without the use of reserves in its general fund
But, as budget discussions were occurring, looming increases in employee health insurance plan costs came up in discussions as an issue the county would face — and one that it could potentially find a way to reduce the impact of
One of the big drivers of the expected growth in cost the county was looking at had to do with the county’s stop loss premium
Stop loss insurance is purchased by employers who self-fund their employee benefit plans but don’t want to assume total liability for catastrophic losses that may arise. Under a stop loss policy, the insurance provider becomes liable for losses above a deductible set in the policy
Kane County carries both a stop loss of $205,000 for individuals and an aggregate stop loss for the HMO plans it provides, which the county recently reached for the first time the county’s executive director of human re
And one major area of recent spending when it comes to employee health insurance plans has been on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs. Between the start of 2025 and the end of May, the county spent $2.4 million on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, Lobrillo has said, compared to about $1.1 million for the version of those medications used in the treatment of diabetes
More Americans than ever are turning to anti-obesity drugs to lose weight and boost health, with a recent survey by health research group KFF finding that about one in eight U.S. adults say they are taking a GLP-1 drug, the Associated Press reported
And Kane County is not alone among surrounding counties in seeing high costs related to GLP-1 drugs
Some employers are responding by dropping coverage of GLP-1s or making workers go through extra steps to get coverage for them, The Wall Street Journal reported last month
Kane County has more than 2,700 employees, including full-time, part-time, seasonal and election workers, according to the county’s most recent available annual comprehensive financial report
Recent figures from the county show that a little over 1,000 employees are on the county health insurance plan, not including spouses and dependents of employees, which make up another nearly 1,200 individuals. The county’s employee medical plan is self-insured, managed by the county’s Human Reois
Just over 200 individuals on the county health insurance plan — including employees and dependents — had a claim for GLP-1 weight-loss drugs in the 15-month period the county looked at, Lobrillo said at a meeting of the county board’s Executive Committee last week, though she has cautioned that this doesn’t necessarily mean all of those people are still on the drugs at this point or were taking them over that whole time period
So, to address the looming cost issues, the county has proposed continuing to cover the medications for diabetes, but eliminating coverage of the drugs for weight loss, starting Jan. 1
The idea was discussed last month at the county board’s Human Services Committee, and was then brought forward and recommended for approval by the board’s Executive Committee last week. It then came to the full board Tuesday for final approval, where it generated further discussion
At the Tuesday meeting, Lobrillo described the proposal as not exactly a cost-saving measure, but rather a way to prevent significant increases in costs in the future. Making this change is slated to reduce costs by about $1.5 million annually, according to county documents included in Tuesday’s meeting agenda, and “stabilize a sharp increase” in next year’s rates
The county is slated to see some increase in health insurance costs regardless, Lobrillo said at the meeting, but eliminating coverage of weight-loss drugs would lessen the impact
And the reason for the measure being brought forward now is so the county can determine what the expected rates for next year will be and bring a rates proposal to the board next month
But the pitch generated a mixed bag of support and criticism from the board at Tuesday’s meeting
Board member Kimberley Young, for example, said she felt this was a “not fully considered item,” referencing the benefits of the drugs and saying that the county hasn’t talked to medical professionals or county staff about the matter
Board member Bill Roth indicated that he’s heard from county employees who are concerned about the proposal
Board member Michelle Gumz, meanwhile, said she feels that “the benefits that (the county is) providing to (its) employees in lieu of providing them a substantial wage goes a long way.”
“It almost feels a little icky, like we’re picking on a certain disease,” Gumz said of the pitch, indicating that this wasn’t the way she wanted to reduce costs
Other board members were more supportive
Clifford Surges, for example, who chairs the board’s Human Services Committee, said his committee and staff have “painstakingly spent hours on this,” and cast the issue in terms of financial concerns
“While (we) all would be in agreement that … there is some benefit to this, it comes down to a matter of affordability,” he said
Board member Jon Gripe pointed out that continuing to cover the drugs benefits a portion of the county’s employees, but requires everyone to pay for it by way of increased premiums, and added that the county may have to switch carriers if the board doesn’t pass the measure
While board member David Young suggested that the prices of these drugs are likely to go down, and that people can pay for it out-of-pocket in the future
The measure passed Tuesday, too, notes that GLP-1 drugs for weight loss are now “commercially available to consumers at reasonable cost to those who wish to continue the medications.”
The county also already has some offerings related to weight loss for employees, like a health and wellness newsletter and physical activity and weight loss challenges, per the county’s website
“Unfortunately, sometimes, boards like this have to make hard decisions,” board member Verner Tepe added during the discussion, saying not approving the removal of these drugs from the employee insurance plans would mean the annual budget is no longer balanced
Ultimately, following a lengthy discussion — including some board members expressing concern that they didn’t have enough information to make a decision on the matter — the proposal to cut GLP-1 drugs for weight-loss purposes from county employees’ health insurance plans passed narrowly, by a vote of 10-8
Voting in favor of the measure were board members Jennifer Abbatacola, Sonia Garcia, Jon Gripe, Mohammad Iqbal, Bill Lenert, Anita Lewis, Bill Roth, Clifford Surges, Verner Tepe and David Young. Voting against it were board members Deborah Allan, Alex Arroyo, Mavis Bates, Michelle Gumz, Michael Linder, Myrna Molina, Cherryl Strathmann and Kimberley Young. Board member Leslie Juby voted “present.”
The Associated Press contributed
