Gallagher consultant Brad Spring reviewed Waco ISD's employer-sponsored medical plan, presenting data through August 2025 and a high-level analysis of Teacher Retirement System ActiveCare (TRS) as a potential option.

Spring said the plan's gross medical expense for August was about $1.7 million (roughly $948 per-employee-per-month) and that the plan's year-to-date gross medical expense on a calendar-year slice was about $10.7 million. On a calendar-year basis the plan was running roughly 8.2% above budget and Gallagher's preliminary projection showed a potential calendar-year deficit near $811,000. On the district's fiscal-year slice Galligher reported a smaller variance (about $402,000 or 2.8% over budget).

Pharmacy is a major cost component: Spring said about 37% of combined plan expenses are pharmacy-related, with antidiabetic and oncology drugs among top drivers. He highlighted that high-cost claimants, including cancer treatments and specialty drugs, are primary cost drivers and that employer rebates for brand and specialty drugs materially reduce net plan cost.

Gallagher also reviewed TRS ActiveCare as a comparator. Spring said the TRS pool can show lower premiums in early years because of scale but warned that a TRS move would create a five-year lock-in for the district, risk loss of pharmacy rebates (Gallagher estimated potential rebate "left on the table" on the order of $1.1 million or more) and produce runout liabilities from the district's current claims. For those reasons, Spring said, "it is not a recommendation to move to TRS for this year." He said Gallagher will continue annual comparisons and refine analyses as TRS and market rates are announced.

Trustees asked about impacts of GLP-1 weight-loss medications (for example, Wegovy/Ozempic) on pharmacy spending. Spring said the PBM and plan administrators have implemented an obesity-management program and that the district will review usage and outcomes by midyear; staff will return with July 2026 reconciled data to inform any coverage or benefit-design changes.

Spring reminded trustees that Gallagher will continue monthly monitoring, work with HR and finance on stop-loss procurement and return with more detailed cost and benefit-design options as data mature.