2003 Risk Management Pools Awards Winners

The Risk Management Pools' Awards were presented Saturday, Aug. 16, during the Association’s annual conference, which was held in Guilford County.

The program is designed to encourage members to improve their risk control programs and thereby reduce their overall pool cost.

Awards are given in three categories – Best Loss Results, Most Innovative and Effective Programs and Most Improved – for each of the three pools.

The Awards

The Best Loss Results Award recognizes pool members who have produced the best risk control results. Each winning county receives $2,500. The second award recognizes members who have implemented the most innovative and effective programs in county government during the past calendar year. Each winning county receives $10,000. The Most Improved Award recognizes members who have worked hard to improve their claims frequency and severity. Each winning county receives $5,000.

GROUP BENEFITS WINNERS

This year there are three winners in the Group Benefits Pool.

The Most Innovative and Effective Program Awards goes to Catawba County for its Employee Health Clinic. The program was implemented in October 2002 and offers in-house pre-employment medical screenings, drugs testing and preventive care services.

The goal is to keep employees out of high-cost medical solutions such as Emergency Rooms and urgent cares centers. It is conveniently located at the Catawba County Government Center. This program has indeed shown a true return on investment and would be an excellent model for other counties to follow.

The Best Loss Results Award for 2003 is given to the Group Benefits Pool member with the lowest average Per Employee Per Month (PEPM) statistic as calculated from paid loss data provided by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. Our calculation was based on paid loss experience for a full 24-month period beginning March 2001 and ending March 31, 2003. Goldsboro-Wayne Transit Authority was this year’s winner and will receive a cash award of $2,500.

The Most Improved Award for 2003 was give to Jones County, whose average loss ratio went from $382.83 per employee per month to $250.93 per employee per month. Jones County won the award by a wide margin.

WORKER’S COMPENSATION WINNERS

Transylvania County won the most innovate program in Workers’ Compensation. In an effort to minimize workers’ compensation claims, the Board of Commissioners approved a safety program called “This is Day One.” The goal was to have county employees go 365 consecutive days without a recordable incident.

The county’s safety committee engaged in an extensive internal marketing campaign that included visual reminders of the program along with monthly slogans and incentive-based awards throughout the year. The program has had a positive impact as recorded incidents have decreased along with the county’s experience modifier.

Alexander County wins the Workers’ Compensation Best Loss Results award for the second year in a row. The county’s experience modifier was 0.63. The average experience modifier for the Workers’ Compensation Pool is in the range of 0.99 to 1.1.

Bertie County takes the Workers’ Compensation Pool Most Improved Award. The county realized a 21.4 percent decrease in its experience modifier. The county hired a safety coordinator in the EMS division who had a tremendous impact on reducing workers’ compensation claims.

LIABILITY AND PROPERTY WINNERS

There were two winners in the Liability and Property Pool. Swain County posted the best loss ratio for the second year in a row with an impressive ratio of 14.8 percent. No other county came close to this ratio. The average loss ratio for the Liability and Property Pool is around 65 to 74 percent.

Orange County posted the most improvement in the Liability and Property Pool. The county decreased its loss ratio by 34.3 percent. The county attributes this loss to an active safety committee that addressed many safety-oriented issues through ongoing employee training.