The Administration recommends that the Mayor and City Commission, approve the Resolution accepting the recommendation of the City Manager, pursuant to RFP 2023-258-WG for administration of the employee assistance program (EAP), which authorizes the Administration to negotiate an agreement with Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc. (a subsidiary of Cigna Corporation), the top-ranked proposer. If negotiations with Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc., are not successful, the Resolution authorizes the Administration to negotiate with Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC, the second-ranked proposer and, if unsuccessful, to negotiate with Compsych Employee Assistance Programs, Inc., the third-ranked proposer. Finally, the Resolution authorizes the City Manager and City Clerk to execute an agreement upon the conclusion of successful negotiations by the Administration.

This solicitation is currently under the cone of silence.

On January 1, 2017, the City entered into an agreement with Evernorth Behavioral Health, Inc. (a subsidiary of Cigna Corporation). for the Administration of its Employee Assistance Program. The existing Agreement is scheduled to expire September 30, 2023.

The program is available to all full-time and part-time employees (approx. 2217), family members, and anyone that cohabitates with the employee. The EAP provides access to work/life resources and licensed clinicians to assist employees and their dependents with a wide variety of concerns, from family and financial issues to substance abuse, emotional health, and stress.

In light of the expiring contract, the Administration prepared RFP 2023-258-WG seeking proposals from qualified firm(s) with whom a replacement agreement could be negotiated, to be effective October 1, 2023.

On February 22, 2023, the Mayor and City Commission approved the issuance of RFP 2023-258-WG Employee Assistance Program. On February 24, 2023, the RFP was issued. A voluntary pre-proposal conference to provide information to proposers submitting a response was held on March 8, 2023. One (1) addenda was issued. The Procurement Department issued bid notices to 11,379 companies utilizing the City's e-procurement system, with 43 prospective bidders accessing the solicitation. RFP responses were due and received on April 14, 2023. The City received proposals from the following seven (7) firms:

Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC

Compsych Employee Assistance Programs, Inc.

Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc.

Espyr, LLC

Janus Associates Inc.

Optum

Ulliance, Inc.

The proposal submitted by Ulliance, Inc. was determined to be non-responsive for failure to meet the minimum experience requirement and could not be further evaluated. Espyr, LLC withdrew its proposal and, therefore, received no further consideration.

On May 12, 2023, the Evaluation Committee convened to consider the proposals received. The Committee was comprised of Marvin Adams, Employee Benefits Manager, Human Resources Department, Cindy Casanova, Assistant Director, Parks and Recreation Department, Lana Hernandez, Human Resources Administrator II, Human Resources Department, Manuel Marquez, Assistant Director, Finance Department, and Jennifer Sanchez, Senior Human Resources Specialist, Human Resources Department. The Committee was provided an overview of the project, and information relative to the City's Cone of Silence Ordinance and the Government Sunshine Law. The Committee was also provided with general information on the scope of services and a copy of each proposal. The Committee was instructed to score and rank each proposal pursuant to the evaluation criteria established in the RFP.

The evaluation process resulted in the proposers being ranked by the Evaluation Committee in the following order (See Attachment A):

1st Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc.

2nd Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC

3rd Compsych Employee Assistance Programs, Inc.

4th Optum

5th Janus Associates Inc.

The following is a summary of the top three ranked firms:

Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc.

Evernorth has been providing benefits to the government and education sector for over fifty years. Today, the firm has over 1.6 million covered lives in this sector and currently provides integrated benefits to a number of local government and education entities. Evernorth operates one of the leading behavioral health programs in the country. It serves over 1,200 EAP clients and over 22.9 million program participants. Driven by a holistic, integrated approach to employee health, its EAP and Work/Life support services are designed to meet the personal assistance needs of individuals and the program assistance needs of your managers, benefits staff, and organizational needs.

Some of the local clients include the City of Fort Lauderdale, the City of Miami, and the City of Coral Springs.

Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC

Aetna offers a broad network of high-performance, and accountable care arrangements that connect members with high-quality, cost-effective care. Aetna’s EAP program goes beyond the traditional network with local options that provide greater convenience and savings. Aetna, a division of CVS Health, is one of the nation's leading providers of behavioral health benefits. Founded in 1853 in Hartford, Connecticut, the firm entered the group health insurance business in 1913. Today, Aetna provides EAP services to numerous government organizations and companies in Florida and over 30 million members globally.

Some of Aetna’s clients include the City of Orlando, Polk County Government, and Sarasota County Government.

Compsych Employee Assistance Programs, Inc.

Founded in 1984, ComPsych serves 68,000 organizations, covering more than 139 million individuals throughout the United States and 200 countries, with customers ranging from Fortune 500 companies to smaller public and private entities, as well as governmental entities. Its customer base includes more than 1,180 public entities at the federal, state, and local levels.

Additionally, Compsych serves a number of large customers in Florida, including but not limited to the Archdiocese of Miami, Inc., Hilton Grand Vacation, First Watch, Masonite, Red Lobster Seafood Co., UF Health Jacksonville, University of Florida, and Xerox.

EAP Services fees for this contract are processed through the internal service fund accounts, managed by the Human Resources Department, Employee Benefits Division. The funding for the employee assistance program is analyzed and projected through actuarial services and approved in the budget process each year. Currently, the EAP Services fee for the plan year 2023 is $1.80 per employee per month (PEPM), $47,887 annually. Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc. proposes an EAP Services fee at the rate of $1.86 PEPM, $49,483 annually. This results in an increase in the annual cost of EAP Services of $1,606. This rate is guaranteed for the first three years. Years 4 and 5 are to be re-evaluated for renewal upon reaching the end of years 3 and 4, respectively.

$49,483 annually

560-1793-000343-13-421-592-00-00-00-

After reviewing the proposals and the results of the evaluation committee, it is recommended that the Administration negotiate with Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc., the top-ranked proposer who is deemed most qualified to administer the City’s Employee Assistance Program. While all of the proposing firms have sufficient experience to provide the required services, Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc., provides a unique familiarity with the City’s employees, drives savings by predicting emerging mental health needs, closing gaps in care, and supporting synergy in mental and behavioral health. This data-driven approach includes measuring patients before, during, and after their mental health care journey. Additionally, Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc., as a subsidiary to Cigna Corporation, the City’s current health care provider and recommended bidder for the upcoming agreement, is including an on-site representative to assist with any issues relating to health or EAP services at no additional cost.

For the reasons stated herein, it is recommended that the Mayor and City Commission approve the Resolution authorizing the Administration to enter into negotiations with Evernorth Care Solutions, Inc., as the top-ranked proposer; and, if unsuccessful, authorizing negotiations with Aetna Behavioral Health, LLC, the second-ranked proposer; and, if unsuccessful, authorizing negotiations with Compsych Employee Assistance Programs, Inc.; further authorizing the City Manager and City Clerk to execute an agreement upon the conclusion of successful negotiations by the Administration.