The Sarasota County Medical Society Board of Governors are exploring, a new “Group Health Insurance Benefit Trust” for our members. Other participants of the Trust, such as Marion and Manatee County Medical Societies have implemented this member benefit in their counties with much success!

The Trust was established by the Marion County Medical Society over 25 years ago. This arrangement with BC/BS allows the trust to share in the profit, which is set aside in an account owned by the physicians. The money is then used to buffer rate increases. Many of their members believe this is the best benefit offered by their county society. An immediate rate decrease cannot be guaranteed however it is the goal to save you money in the near future.

Although the ultimate success of the program will mostly be determined after the first few years, Manatee CMS has experienced a 0% rate increase for their first year and 8.5% for the second year. They’re pleased with the results and believe the plan is off to a great start!

We invite our members and non-members to attend all insurance meetings to hear more about this opportunity. This could possibly be of great value to you and your employees.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

The trust has strict guidelines and the following are the most important…

1. All physicians on the plan must be SCMS and FMA members (there are no exceptions)

2. All physicians must sign up for the plan upon the initial enrollment (there are no exceptions). This is a guideline that is not negotiable. There will be documentation to support your decision to accept or decline coverage.

For more information please contact the Sarasota County Medical Society at 941.966.3134. You can also visit Manatee County Medical Society Insurance Trust on the web at www.trustmcms.com