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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNACoMoghannam, Kathleen From: Murdock, Phyllis Seat: Thursday, December 22, 2011 12:46 PM To: Hahn, Paul; Lambert, Steve; Kirk, Maureen; Yamaguchi, Kim; Wahl, Larry; Connelly, Bill Cc: Moghannam, Kathleen; Kim, Sang Subject: FW: NACo Prescription Discount Card Program Revenue Model Passed! Attachments: NACo Board Meeting Summary Article December 2011.doc This is for information only, we currently are members of the NACo prescription program and 1 will await new language from them regarding this change. You will most likely see it come to you as an agenda item in future. Wanted you to know about it at the same time a received the info. Merry Christmas to all! P1-El°i_i.ES nnuar~oc:ic E]irector orPublic HeaEtit 13uttc County Public Hcalih Qcp~rtotzcnE I~'hane: ~39.S;S-77~E1 f ~~: 53p.j3R-21 G7 S4ARb pF+S~++P~~~RS --- - ' - --- --._---_ __ ~ROV1Ll:l=, CALIFORUj~..~..-,__...~....-... From; Andrew Goldschmidt fmailto:agoldschmidta~naco.ar4] Sent: Thursday, December 22, 2011 10:34 AM To; Murdock, Phyllis Subject; NACo Prescription Discount Card Program Revenue Model Passed! Phyllis, Happy Holidaysl See the attached article with the reference from the board vote and we anticipate being able to get out the paperwork for the change to counties in the new year! Thanks for being a member countyl Best Regards, Andrew S. Goldschmidt, CAE, MBA Director, Membership Marketing NACo-National Association of Counties 25 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Ste. 500 Washington, DC 20001 Toll Free: 1-888-407-NACo ~6226y x221 Ph: 202-942-4221 (Direct Line) Fx: 202-393-2630 "The Voice of America's Counties" By Beverly Schlotterbeck Executive Editor NACo's Board of Directors approved a signif cant change to the popular NACo Prescription Discount Card Program, adopted a $20.7 million consolidated annual budget for 2012 and postponed a decision to eliminate printed copies of County News in favor of a weekly, electronically-delivered publication. Board members also okayed new legislative policy priorities and election guidelines for second vice president candidates at their fall meeting held this year in Orange County (Orlando), Fla., Dec. 8-10. By a near unanimous vote, the Board directed staff to move forward with negotiating a new contract for the prescription program with CVS Caremark that provides participating counties with an option to receive a $1 fee for each prescription filled when the NACo card provides a discount. NACo would receive a $.50 marketing fee per prescription filled, which it would share with state associations that endorse the NACo program. State associations would receive 40 cents and NACo would keep 10 cents. The prescription discount card would continue to be free. Counties now enrolled in the program could continue under their current contract, which provides no revenue to counties, or they could opt to switch to the new program. Residents in counties that choose not to receive revenue would receive a slightly higher discount savings rate - 2 percent to 2.5 percent. NACo sought the change because a number of competitors are challenging NACo's leadership in the prescription discount card industry by offering revenue to counties and state associations that buy into their programs. The proposal was discussed in a Board forum a day before the vote was taken. Some Board members expressed their unease with approving the revenue option because they felt that residents should receive the highest savings possible and did not want to change the program from its original purpose. Qthers, however, suggested that given the strain on county revenues and the competition for county business, it would be a prudent move for the association to offer a revenue option. With a positive vote on the proposal, NACo staff is working with Caremark to finalize the new contract with the goal of having the program in place by Jan. 1, 2012. A second proposal to the Board signaling a dramatic change to the delivery format and schedule of County News sparked wide-ranging discussion and a 40-39 vote for postponing a decision until the next Board meeting at NACo's Legislative Conference in March 2112. As presented, two current electronic newsletters -The Legislative Bulletin and eNews -would be consolidated into County News, which in turn would become a weekly, emailed publication. County News and eNews are now mailed or emailed every two weeks on an alternating schedule. The new emailed version was slated to be launched around the time of the Annual Conference in July 201.2. There would be no more printed versions of County News. The move would save the association approximately $350,000 annually in printing and mailing costs, and take advantage of the growing popularity of tablets, like the iPads, and smart phones. Board members expressed reservations about the total elimination of the printed version, citing some members inability to access email in their counties. Others spoke of the marketing and retention value to NACo of having printed copies in county offices nationwide. It was suggested that NACo staff survey NACo members about their preferences. A survey is expected to be undertaken in the first quarter of 2012. 2012 Legislative Priorities NACo's key legislative priorities for 2012 program year support a balanced approach to the federal deficit that would not gut programs of signif cant benef t to counties and their citizens. They also present a balanced demographic support for programs that benef t rural, suburban and urban counties. The key priorities support reauthorizing the Farm Bill, surface transportation and aviation programs, maintaining partnerships for f nancing Medicaid and social services and full funding for PILT and SRS, among others. (See "2012 NACo Legislative Priorities," for expanded list.) On the budget front, the 2012 budget appears little changed from the one adopted by the Board in 2011. An anticipated decline in membership dues and new federal regulatory requirements associated with NACo's retirement programs restrict the budget's growth for 2012. Nonetheless, NACo remains in sound financial shape with revenues expected to increase in some areas, expenses to remain under control and a small surplus of revenue over expenses anticipated. In his report to the Board, CFO David Keen said the association is in a strong financial position with more than $8 million in cash and nearly $20 million in investments -due to its diversified revenue sources -and well- positioned to withstand tough economic times. In other Board action: • The Board approved revisions to the "Guidelines for Candidates for NACo Second Vice President," which it had initially adopted in 2009. (See "Second VP Guideline Campaign Changes"). Accepted a report from the Programs and Services Committee, which included among other items, information about a new credentialing program, Credential in County Leadership, that NACo is expected to offer to members. Credits would be available in three areas: Leadership Perspectives, Communications and Management.