(AUSTIN, TX, May 15, 2020) – In late April, during an unprecedented challenging time for healthcare providers, a group of rural and community hospital leaders celebrated a significant victory.

As co-owners of a new medical stop-loss insurance company, they were meeting (virtually of course) to review first-year results. For the 18 hospitals involved (now 21), there was only good news.

“We were delighted to report CHIC owners are receiving their share of a cash distribution from profits that have exceeded half a million dollars so far,” says Brant Couch, CPA, CIC. “When we designed CHIC, we knew it could empower rural hospitals to take back ownership of their success… but we had no idea it would exceed our expectations like it has.”

“The distribution couldn’t have come at a better time,” says the coalition’s first member, David Lee, CEO at Otto Kaiser Memorial Hospital in Kenedy TX.

CHIC is designed exclusively for rural and community hospitals that are considering or currently self-funding their employee health benefit program. It provides the first layer of protection against those larger claims and offloads the catastrophic claims to the stop loss carrier partner.  Instead of going it alone and individually giving all their premium to a large carrier for stop-loss insurance, CHIC participants pool their risk in an insurance company of their own and keep most of the premium for themselves.

“CHIC provides a financial and strategic platform that empowers a broad range of collaboration between like-minded hospital leaders,” Couch says. “The financial benefits go beyond the potential for a significant cash distribution each year. CHIC owners collaborate by sharing best practices for benefit program design and cost control, as well as employee well-being.”

Jonathan Bailey, CEO of Hansford County Hospital District in Spearman TX says, “As a member of this coalition, we are part of a community of people and hospitals with similar objectives and values. This community provides us with access to resources we would not have on our own and tangible dollars we can use to make our benefits better. We are very pleased with the outcome of the program and look forward to reaping the benefits of our membership for years to come.”

Looking ahead to its second year, CHIC is actively seeking additional rural and community hospital leaders. “The original owners took a well-calculated risk when they bought into CHIC, but that risk has paid off; they have turned risk into an asset capable of delivering exceptional ROI,” says Couch.

To learn more about CHIC, its owners, management, and structure, contact Brant Couch.