Voluntary Programs: Short and Long Term Disability, Legal Plan, Identity Theft, and Pet Insurance

The Franklin County Board of Commissioners, on behalf of the Franklin County Cooperative Health Improvement Program, is requesting proposals for Short-Term Disability Insurance, Long-Term Disability Insurance, Legal Plan Insurance, Pet Insurance, and Identity Theft Protection services, with proposals due October 16, 2025 (amended from October 15, 2025 per Amendment 2).

The Cooperative serves approximately 6,500 employees across 40+ agencies in Franklin County and surrounding counties. Vendors may submit proposals for any combination of the five product lines; missing lines will impact scoring. The scope requires vendors to provide multi-year rate guarantees with pricing structured for both employer-paid and voluntary employee-paid premium options across all disability and legal programs. A 10% minimum enrollment threshold at the cooperative aggregate level determines payroll deduction versus direct bill eligibility. The legal plan attorney network must include Franklin County and six adjacent counties (Delaware, Fairfield, Licking, Madison, Pickaway, and Union) with 48–72 hour appointment availability; virtual appointments are acceptable if member-selected rather than mandatory. Vendors may subcontract for lines of business they do not directly provide, with the prime vendor retaining contract responsibility and administration oversight. Pricing submissions must be net of commissions; the county does not pay commissions. Vendors must propose all work performed onshore with no offshore resources, including back-office services and call centers. The contract term runs through December 31, 2031, divided into three guaranteed rate years (2027–2029) and two years with rate increase caps (2030–2031).

The Cooperative is primarily self-funded; the county is exempt from all federal, state, and local taxes and will not pay late fees or interest. A pre-proposal conference is scheduled for September 18, 2025, at 1:00 P.M. EST via Microsoft Teams; written questions are due by September 23, 2025, at 5:00 P.M. EST. The county intends to award one contract but reserves the right to award multiple contracts. Vendors must maintain comprehensive insurance including $1,000,000 general liability, $2,000,000 umbrella coverage, and $5,000,000 cyber insurance. No incumbent information or specific funding amount is identified. The current legal plan administrator is MetLife Legal Plans; current disability carriers are Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; current ID Theft provider is Aura; current pet insurance carrier is MetLife Pet Insurance.