|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
IBL MINUTES APRIL 9, 2009 |
|
| |
|
| |
INSURANCE, BENEFITS & LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES 4-9-09
PRESENT
- Simon S. Russin, Vice Chair
- Edward L. Blecksmith
- James P. Harris, Alternate
ABSENT
- William de la Garza, Chair
- Edward L. Blecksmith
MEMBERS AT LARGE
- Sadonya Antebi
- Yves Chery
- Les Robbins
STAFF, ADVISORS, PARTICIPANTS
- Lita Payne
- Cynthia Lau
- Dave Muir
- Mercer Human Resource Consulting
- Clay Levister
- CVS Caremark
- Bruce Lyons, Senior Vice President of Employer Sales
- Sue Jaffke-Stutz, Strategic Account Executive
The meeting was called to order by Chairman Russin at 11:12 a.m.
- APPOINTMENT OF VOTING MEMBER(S) IN THE EVENT ONE OR MORE REGULAR COMMITTEE
MEMBERS ARE ABSENT
The Chair appointed Miss Antebi and Mr. Harris voting members
of the Committee.
- APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF MARCH 5,
2009
A motion was made by Mr. Morris, seconded by Mr. Harris, to approve the minutes
of the regular meeting of March 5, 2009.
The motion passed unanimously.
(Item
IV-A. CVS/Caremark Presentation was taken out of order prior to Action Items)
- ACTION ITEMS
- Recommend to the Board of Retirement the selection of Mercer to perform
a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) audit of CVS Caremark for the 2008-2009 plan
year. (Memorandum dated March 25, 2009, from Lita Payne, Director, Retiree
Health Care)
At the November 13, 2008 meeting, the Insurance, Benefits and
Legislative Committee, authorized the Health Care Director to perform a request
for proposal (RFP) to find a Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) audit vendor
and report back to the Committee with a recommended vendor. The RFP was sent
directly to 18 firms and posted on LACERA’s website. Thirteen firms submitted responses. The responses were evaluated in two phases. In Phase One, staff reviewed and narrowed the vendor pool to the top five, relying on submissions being timely, complete, and in compliance with the requirements of the RFP. Once a submission met these basic requirements, they were ranked in order of content quality. Price was not a deciding factor during this phase. The top five firms selected to advance to Phase Two were:
• HealthLinX Prescription Management Consulting
• KPMG
• Mercer Consulting
• Milliman
• Watson Wyatt & Company
In Phase Two, staff individually reviewed and rated the proposals using eight categories – proposal
requirements, project overview, organizational background, questionnaire
and written responses, implementation plan, analysis of personnel, references,
pricing. Staff met to discuss the proposals and the scoring methodology.
At the conclusion of the group discussion the Evaluation Team unanimously
agreed to rank Mercer the highest and most qualified firm overall. Milliman,
Inc. was a very close second, followed by Watson Wyatt, HealthLinX, and KPMG.
The final firm ranking was consistent with the final scoring and was unanimous
among all Evaluation Team members.
A motion was made by Mr. Morris, seconded
by Mr. Harris, to approve the recommendation.
The motion passed with Mr.
Russin voting no.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Support” position on AJR
10, which would request the President and Congress of the United States to
enact the “Social Security Fairness Act of 2009.” (Memorandum
dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion
was made by Mr. Harris, seconded by Mr. Morris, to support AJR 10.
The motion
passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Support” position on
U.S. Senate Bill 484, which would enact the “Social Security Fairness Act
of 2009.” (Memorandum
dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion
was made by Mr. Harris, seconded by Mr. Morris, to support U.S. Senate Bill
484.
The motion passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on AB
609 relating to disability retirements in Tulare County. (Memorandum dated
March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Mr. Morris,
seconded by Mr. Harris, to watch AB 609.
The motion failed with Messrs. Harris
and Morris voting yes, and Miss Antebi and Mr. Russin voting no.
The Committee
then referred this item to the Board to adopt a position.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on AB
664, which would create a rebuttable presumption for hospital employees in
worker’s
compensation cases. (Memorandum dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative
Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Miss Antebi, seconded by Mr. Russin,
to support AB 664.
The motion failed with Miss Antebi and Mr. Russin voting
yes, and Messrs. Harris and Morris voting no.
The Committee then referred this
item to the Board to adopt a position.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on AB
1034 authorizing special district status for Marin CERA. (Memorandum dated
March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was made
by Mr. Morris, seconded by Mr. Harris, to watch AB 1034.
The motion passed
unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on AB
1136, which would permit specified retired members the ability to revoke
certain optional settlements. (Memorandum dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia
Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Mr. Harris, seconded by Mr. Morris, to
watch AB 1136.
The motion passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on AB
1227 relating to workers’ compensation
benefits payable under Labor Code Section 4850. (Memorandum dated March 27,
2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Mr.
Harris, seconded by Mr. Morris, to watch AB 1227.
The motion passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Support” position on
HR 1413 (HELPS II), which would extend eligibility for tax-free distributions
for health and long-term care premiums for all eligible public retirees.
(Memorandum dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was
made by Mr. Morris, seconded by Mr. Harris, to support HR 1413.
The motion
passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Watch” position on SB
345 relating to increased survivor benefits for San Bernardino County’s
safety members killed in the line of duty. (Memorandum dated April 1, 2009,
from Cynthia Lau, Legislative Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Miss Antebi,
seconded by Mr. Harris, to watch SB 3458.
The motion passed unanimously.
- Recommend the Board of Retirement adopt a “Support” position on
SB 538 relating to disability leaves and mandatory retirement for Safety
members. (Memorandum dated March 27, 2009, from Cynthia Lau, Legislative
Affairs Officer)
A motion was made by Mr. Morris, seconded by Mr. Harris, to watch SB 538.
The motion passed unanimously.
- FOR INFORMATION
(This item was taken out of order before Section III. Action Items)
- CVS/Caremark Presentation
Bruce Lyons and Sue Jaffke-Stutz gave a brief presentation on CVS/Caremark.
CVS/Caremark is the largest integrated provider pf pharmacy care in the
United States, uniquely positioned to consistently deliver low-cost and
high-quality pharmacy health services. One in two consumers receive pharmacy
or health services from CVS/Caremark, while one in four prescriptions are
dispensed through them. For some clients, that means 80% of their prescriptions
are dispensed by CVS/Caremark. Some challenges faced by CVS/Caremark are
rising health care costs, unengaged plan participants – only 40% of consumers are actively engaged in their health care, gaps in care for the chronically ill, making benefits easier to understand and use.
CVS has re-engineered the pharmacy process to provide more time for face-to-face pharmacist counseling. Also, the MinuteClinics are expanding to offer more services for members. The MinuteClinics, located in many CVS stores, are open evenings and weekends, staffed by Board-certified nurse practitioners. The MinuteClinics offer disease management assistance, lower cost for acute and preventive care, with an average visit length of 15 minutes.
Mr. Lyons and Ms. Jaffke-Stutz also gave an update on the CVS/Caremark-Longs integration, which has moved along in a very aggressive fashion. While CVS has always had a strong presence in Southern California, this will give a stronger presence in Northern California, as well as a little in Arizona and a lot in Hawaii. With the exception of Hawaii, which will retain the Longs name, the stores in California will be changing to CVS.
CVS/Caremark’s ongoing commitment to LACERA is to help manage overall costs,
engage members, and provide outstanding service to both plan sponsors and
participants.
- Staff Activities Report for March, 2009
The staff activities report was discussed.
- CIGNA & Anthem Blue Cross Claims Experience
The CIGNA & Anthem Blue Cross Claims Experience reports through February,
2009 were discussed.
- Federal Legislation
- Weekly Highlights – March 23, 2009
- Weekly Highlights – March 17, 2009
- Weekly Highlights – March 9, 2009
- Weekly Highlights – March 2, 2009
Presented for information only.
- California Retirement Legislation
- Pending Legislation
Assembly Constitutional Amendment 17 –
University of California’s Temporary Voluntary Separation Program
PERS/STRS Bills:
AB 232-STRS: Signed Documents/Payments
AB 399-PERS: Accumulated contributions
AB 1477-PERS: Death Benefit
SB 278-PERS: Board of Administration
Presented for information only.
- MISCELLANEOUS
- PUBLIC COMMENT
- GOOD OF THE ORDER
(For discussion purposes only)
- ADJOURNMENT
5/7/09
|
|
