May 24, 2022
PBMs, or Pharmacy Benefit Managers, get a lot of attention in employee benefits plans, and for good reason. Prescription drugs account for 30, 40, or even 50% or more of a group’s medical claims, and are a huge driver of rising healthcare costs for employers and employees. If you aren’t paying attention to your prescription drug …
May 9, 2022
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and we must give special attention to those who die by suicide in this country. The annual rate of suicide continues to rise, despite greater mental health awareness across the country. Sadly, suicide was the leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 10 and 34 in …
April 12, 2022
Last week, we shared some highlights from Elizabeth Mitchell’s presentation at the 2022 MemorialCare Presidents’ Partnership, and this week, we’d like to turn the spotlight to a presentation and comments by Ashok Subramanian, the CEO of Centivo, a leading TPA in offering affordable, high-quality healthcare to employers. Click here for a Twitter thread on my …
January 5, 2022
While we spend time here discussing healthcare and cost trends impacting group health plans, we do also spend quite a bit of time working with our group clients to keep them compliant with the various federal, state, and local laws and regulations surrounding employee benefits. Webinar on 1/20: Benefits Compliance in 2022: Preparing for a …
December 22, 2021
Healthcare is a massive part of the US economy and a major expense for most small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). And many organizations can best steward their health plans by looking past current year costs to trends over the next 3 to 5 years. Between 2014 and 2019 (before the pandemic), the US population increased …
December 16, 2021
The Kaiser Family Foundation released its 2021 Employer Health Benefits Survey in November. This is a very robust survey and always chock full of helpful information on the state and trajectory of employer health plans in America. Our clients always want to know what other employers are doing when it comes to benefits in their …
December 8, 2021
The health insurance industry is typically behind the overall economy when it comes to innovation. This is a major problem since insurance premiums and costs are on an unsustainable trajectory. Employers often find themselves stuck in the cycle of increasing annual renewals with their only option being to spreadsheet other carriers and plans. But what …
October 20, 2021
Surprise medical bills have received a good amount of attention recently and for good reason. Sarah Kliff, a health policy reporter for the New York Times, has written extensively on this topic recently. Surprise medical bills cost Americans millions each year. After years of debate, Congress is now set to ban most of them. https://t.co/3eoeez9Ina …
September 22, 2021
There are still a few days left before the September 30th deadline for the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant program. There is a dedicated website for the program here: CAReliefGrant.com. These grants do not need to be paid back and can range from $5,000 to $25,000. If a business is in one of the following industries, …
September 22, 2021
September is Suicide Prevention Month and World Suicide Prevention Day was recognized on September 10. The LBL Group is committed to helping our clients create save workplaces that support employees across the spectrum of health needs, including mental and behavioral health. To this end, our consultant John Hansbrough was quoted by Going Digital: Behavioral Health …
