A meeting of the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees convened at 9:32 a.m. on Friday, August 6, 2021, on the Hammond, Indiana, campus of Purdue University Northwest. The meeting was held in Alumni Hall located within the Student Union and Library Building. Everyone in the room was wearing a mask amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Committee members present were: Sonny Beck; Malcolm DeKryger; and Michael Klipsch. The absence of Don Thompson, Committee Chair, was excused. All other trustees were present: Michael Berghoff; JoAnn Brouillette; Vanessa Castagna; Theresa Carter; Mark Gee; and Gary Lehman.

Officers and administrators in attendance were: Mitch Daniels, president; Jay Akridge, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity; Chris Ruhl, chief financial officer and treasurer; Jim Almond, senior vice president, assistant treasurer, and assistant secretary; Steve Schultz, general counsel; Janice Indrutz, corporate secretary and senior executive assistant to the Board; Ron Elsenbaumer, chancellor of Purdue University Fort Wayne; and Tom Keon, chancellor, Purdue University Northwest.

Trustee Klipsch facilitated the meeting in Trustee Thompson’s absence.

I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Finance Committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes of its meeting convened on June 11, 2021.

II. APPROVAL OF 2022 MEDICAL PLAN

Ms. Candace Shaffer, senior director of benefits, informed the Committee that all Purdue employees now participated in the consumer-driven health plans, and she provided other plan demographics data. She reviewed the history of benefit changes since 2014 and outlined ways in which progress had been made on longer-term, strategic initiatives to address underlying drivers of increasing costs. Ms. Shaffer compared Purdue’s medical costs since 2016 to the national trend and noted that Purdue’s growth in medical costs was only 1% annually compared to the national trend of 6%. She attributed the slowed rate of growth in medical costs at Purdue to measures implemented over the past few years, and she said the COVID-19 pandemic had impacted healthcare as well. Ms. Shaffer presented recommendations for the 2022 medical plan, which, she said, were part of a multi-year plan to improve population health, control overall costs, and achieve the Board’s target of a 20/80 cost share. The recommendations included no increase to employee premiums for a third year but did include a 5% increase in premiums for early retirees. She informed the Committee that the recommended changes to the medical plan for 2022 would save the university an estimated $1,700,000. Ms. Shaffer also reviewed the ways in which the medical plan changes would be communicated to faculty and staff.

President Daniels stated that, while the university had performed well in the past few years relative to controlling premiums while adding benefits, it still needed to find ways to encourage better preventive health. He expressed his disappointment that roughly half of employees did not take advantage of the free annual physical through the medical plan. In response to a question from Chairman Berghoff, Ms. Shaffer stated that the medical plan included Purdue Fort Wayne and Purdue Northwest. Upon proper motion duly made and seconded, the Finance Committee voted unanimously to recommend full Board approval of the 2022 medical plan. A copy of Ms. Shaffer’s presentation and other supporting materials were filed with the minutes.

III. ADJOURNMENT

By consent, the meeting adjourned at 9:47 a.m.