County Commission | The Magazine May 2019 | Page 26

FROM THE COVER
Safer Counties
All Fund members benefit from gains at the local level
ounties themselves deserve
significant credit for the Funds’
C
growing financial strength because
of the way they have embraced safety
initiatives, most prominently the Safety
Incentive Discount Program.
In its simplest form, it’s the classic
financial win-win of self-insurance pools
– fewer and less severe insurance claims
save money for the Funds, so the Funds
can reduce premium-contributions paid
by counties. Not to mention the biggest
safety benefit of all – county workers
going home to their families in the same
condition as they started work that day.
The Safety Incentive Discount
Program, or SIDP, began in 2011. Each
year, member counties are provided with
a checklist of actions to perform, such
as establishing policies, holding regular
safety meetings and participating in
training. If the checklist is completed,
the county receives a financial incentive,
essentially a rebate distributed with other
monies returned to Fund members.
In the most recent distribution,
members received checks totaling
$3,320,200 in April from the
workers’ compensation Fund. That
total represents SIDP awards, along
with a longevity bonus and a return
of investment earnings based on
participation and claims experience.
The SIDP checklist, which can
vary from year to year, is strategically
chosen based on claims data from
Alabama counties. “It is a way to give
the county control – to know what to
do to control their own losses,” said
Henry van Arcken, ACCA Director of
Insurance Services.
One proactive measure counties
can take is requiring employees to
wear seatbelts anytime they are in
a moving vehicle. The policy itself
cannot prevent accidents, but it can
and does greatly reduce the severity of
26 | MAY 2019
High visibility vest? Check. Safety glasses? Check. Ear protection and dust mask?
Check and check. Houston County’s full-time employees received a cost-of-living
adjustment in 2016 that would not have been possible without insurance savings from
the county’s vastly improved safety record.
PHOTO: Kelly Crowell, Houston County