County self-insurance administrator Cassandra proposed creating a "severity fund" to give the county more control over catastrophic and high-cost workers' compensation claims. The Finance & Rules Committee approved a motion directing the administrator to set up the fund, obtain a standalone employer's liability policy, and cancel the county's Midwest workers' compensation excess liability policy by April 1, 2025.

Cassandra told the committee the county currently maintains a workers' compensation fund balance of about $6,000,000. The county's excess liability policy has a $2,000,000 self-insured retention (SIR) — a threshold claims must reach before the excess policy provides benefits — and the board has not received a benefit from that excess policy since it began in February 2019. Cassandra said the prior annual premium was roughly $72,468 and the renewal quote would have been about $97,576, driven largely by payroll increases and audit adjustments. "The cost in the past was $72,468. However, the renewal would be at $97,576," she said.

Cassandra recommended establishing a severity fund with a maximum balance of $2,000,000, considering a lower self-insured retention (options discussed included $750,000 to $2,000,000), adopting utilization rules that would allow the county to pay portions of high-cost claims from the fund, and adding a budget line (for example, $50,000 annually) until the fund reaches its target. She also recommended obtaining an employer's liability policy with a $1,000,000 limit as a standalone policy. Committee members asked about claim size drivers, participants covered (including the county hospital, fire departments, villages, search and rescue, and soil and water), and whether state regulations cap payouts; Cassandra described indemnity caps and medical-cost drivers.

Committee members approved the motion directing the administrator to create the severity fund, obtain employer's liability coverage, and cancel the Midwest excess liability policy by the stated deadline. Cassandra said she would monitor the fund and report back to the board on outcomes and utilization policy.