<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=317pRX_11P97XvA00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=317pRX_11P97XvA00" width="1200" height="600" >TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - The Smith County Commissioners Court approved changes Tuesday to help with the rising cost of caring for county workers. The changes will apply to the county’s health plan beginning Oct. 1, 2025.“The effort today is to find ways to save taxpayers money while still making sure that each of the county employees and their loved ones get the care that they get,” said Pct. 2 Commissioner John Moore.In recent years, the cost of providing health care to county employees has risen from about $10 million in 2023 to around $13 million in 2024.“We’re projecting around $16.6 million this year. So, we realized the cost of doing this business for our employees has gone up,” said Smith County Judge Neal Franklin.Among the changes approved is a new $500 co-pay for visits to the emergency room. The change was prompted by some employees going to the ER for ailments that could be treated at an urgent care clinic or using telemedicine.“We had an employee that was at the ER 50 times,” said Director of Human Resources Esmerelda Corona.The change could save the county more than $600,000, according to Franklin.“When a visit is for possibly the flu, where someone could have gone to urgent care but instead, they went to the ER, we really want to encourage them to go to urgent care because we spend less money out of the plan, which is taxpayer dollars,” Franklin said.In another cost-saving attempt, the commissioners court approved an audit of dependents to ensure only those allowed on the plan are being covered. The results could save the county anywhere from $17,000 to $121,000.“Oftentimes what happens is renewal comes up and you just check the same box as you did before. This is going to push out the importance of making sure that it’s right,” said Moore.In the current budget year, the county has transferred $2 million from the general fund to the health insurance fund. The county auditor said if the trend continues, transferred funds will be in the range of $3 million to $3.5 million by the end of the budget year.</div></body>

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TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - The Smith County Commissioners Court approved changes Tuesday to help with the rising cost of caring for county workers. The changes will apply to the county’s health plan beginning Oct. 1, 2025. “The effort today is to find ways to save taxpayers money while still...

Smith County employee health plan changes include $500 emergency room co-pay

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TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - The Smith County Commissioners Court approved changes Tuesday to help with the rising cost of caring for county workers. The changes 

Smith County employee health plan changes include $500 emergency room co-pay

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