March 22, 2023
We sometimes hear Captive Insurance and Self-Funding used interchangeably, but they are in fact two separate employee benefits strategies. Let’s explore how are they similar and how are they different. Captives and Self-Funding are not Fully-Insured To begin, let’s be clear that both of these strategies are an alternative to a Fully-Insured Health Plan. With a …
March 7, 2023
We look at a number of strategies to help employers lower their health insurance costs. One of these are Spousal Surcharges and Spousal Carve-outs. Let’s explore each of these in greater detail and as always, you can schedule a complimentary call with an advisor to discuss these in greater detail. A Spousal Surcharge increases the employee contribution to …
February 7, 2023
Employers are facing unsustainable cost increases For many companies, healthcare costs including health insurance have become a top expense. It often goes payroll first, then healthcare benefits. It’s not uncommon for many employers today to face healthcare costs of $8,000 or more per year per employee. And healthcare costs have been steadily increasing, increasing 152 …
January 23, 2023
I’m onboarding a new client this month and what is the single biggest issue they have when it comes to benefits? Administrative Overload Here’s what I mean by that. For every new hire, their HR administrator prepares a custom Word doc with payroll rates based on the hire’s age, sends that to the employee, and …
January 3, 2023
Congress passed an omnibus government funding bill at the end of 2022 titled the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 to avoid a shutdown. One of the provisions affects HSA telehealth services by again extending HSA relief to consumers with High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs). Consumers can receive first-dollar telehealth and remote care services and not …
December 13, 2022
Late last year, the new Broker Compensation Disclosure law went into effect to add transparency to the broker/client relationship. It’s part of the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which included the No Surprises Act, among many other things. What is the Broker Compensation Disclosure? The CAA requires brokers and consultants who provide employee benefits services to disclose their …
November 14, 2022
Kaiser Family Foundation (No affiliation with Kaiser Permanente) released its 24th annual survey of trends in employer-sponsored coverage. This survey is a great resource for benefits and financial professionals to better understand what’s happening in the employee benefits space, particularly among premiums, employee contributions, cost-sharing provisions, offer rates, wellness programs, and employer practices. Increased cost …
October 31, 2022
Employer health insurance costs are rising, and employees at small companies bear a greater burden than their counterparts at large employers, according to the 2022 KFF Employer Health Benefits survey. On average, employees at small companies pay $2,000 more for family coverage and face deductibles that are $1,000 higher. This report highlights the disparities in …
October 18, 2022
With the January 1st and year-end renewals coming up, employers are looking to find cost savings and the best programs for employees. One option that has lovers and haters is a PEO or Professional Employment Organization. A PEO has some real technical definitions to know – let’s save that for another time. Let’s just summarize it as when …
October 4, 2022
Primary care is a hot topic today in employee benefits and the broader healthcare space. Let’s start by defining Primary Care as when an employee has a relationship with a team of medical providers to access urgent care, chronic care, preventative care, and more. The reason primary care is in the news today is that …
