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<br /> <br /> Staff Report <br /> <br /> <br />To: Mayor Fischer and Members of the City Council <br /> <br />From: Heidi Heller, City Clerk/HR Manager <br /> <br />Date: December 3, 2025 <br /> <br />Re: Joint Powers Agreement for New Health Insurance Plan <br /> <br />Action To Be Considered: <br />Motion to approve, table, or deny the following: <br />• Joint Powers Agreement with South Central Service Cooperative for Employee Health <br />Insurance Plan <br /> <br />Background: <br />The city offers a health insurance plan for regular employees who work 30 or more hours per <br />week. Since 2019, the city has contracted with the Public Employees Insurance Program (PEIP) <br />to offer health insurance. The annual rate increases from PEIP after 2020 were much higher than <br />they had offered pre-2020, but were likely still lower than the city would have received <br />elsewhere. Our insurance plan options are limited since we are a small group, and not many <br />providers are interested. <br /> <br />Every year, our insurance broker requests quotes from other health insurance providers. If we do <br />receive a quote, it has not been lower than PEIP until this year. The 2026 PEIP increase was <br />nearly 20%, and they now require four-year contracts instead of two-year ones. We received a <br />lower quote from the Minnesota Healthcare Consortium – South Central Service Cooperative <br />(SCSC), which was a 12.75% increase. This plan offers a lower deductible, the same coverage <br />level, a larger network of clinics and doctors, and no referrals are needed. Additionally, we will <br />also have Kavira, which integrates with our traditional health plan. Kavira provides house or <br />virtual medical visits for common urgent care conditions at no charge to employees. The <br />premium cost for Kavira is the only expense for this plan and will be covered 50% by SCSC, as <br />we will be part of their pilot program testing Kavira Health in 2026. <br /> <br />The Minnesota Healthcare Consortium covers all of Minnesota but divides the state into several <br />cooperative regions. Little Canada is geographically located within the South Central Service <br />Cooperative. The Minnesota Healthcare Consortium has also signed a second four-year <br />agreement with Medica to serve as the insurance provider. <br /> <br />Staff Recommendations: <br />Staff recommends approving the Joint Powers Agreement with South Central Service <br />Cooperative for a new employee health insurance plan. <br /> <br />Attachments: <br />• Joint Powers Agreement