Erin Mershon wrote in the Washington Health Policy Week in Review, "large employers are expecting employee health benefit costs to rise by five percent in 2017, less than half the increase expected for consumers who purchase health care on the public exchanges created by the 2010 health law."
Kaiser Health News has released an article by Michelle Andrews, discussing the trend of self-funding among smaller organizations. "Instead of buying a health insurance policy to cover their workers, a growing number of small and midsized companies are opting to pay their employees’ medical claims directly."
Image: SHRM
Stephen Miller writes for the Society of Human Resources Management, “On July 1, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published an interim final rule with a list of increased penalty amounts for violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and other employee benefit and pay statutes.
Image: iStock
Jack Craver writes for Benefits Pro about how a recent study by Alegeus demonstrates the stress and overwhelm many consumers feel when faced with healthcare decisions. Topping the list are how to plan for out-of-pocket costs (2/3rds of respondants) and choosing a benefits plan (55%).
Benjamin D. Sommers takes a look at why the annual Spring panic around premium increases for ACA marketplace plans is “overblown.” The fact that most increases will be reduced before open enrollment and that most consumers received premium tax credits are both cited as reasons the initial proposed increases are not a big deal.
Read the full article on The New England Journal of Medicine.
Dave Chase advocates for CEOs to question where health plan documents that their organization operates under come from – internally or from the health plan carriers themselves?
A TransUnion Healthcare study has found more evidence that employees are bearing the brunt of healthcare costs in the form of deductibles and OOP maximums, with a 13 percent rise in both between 2014-2015.
Drew Altman, President and Chief Executive of the Kaiser Family Foundation, shares his perspective on how affordable the Affordable Care Act really is, for both those insured in the marketplace and through employers.
Image: Awane
The GOP may be offering up alternatives to the ACA, but for now the universal health plan is here to stay and keeps chugging along. Below is a quick round-up of relevant ACA news that came out this month, and could help keep you on track and in compliance.
Photo: homegymr
The healthcare industry is a rapidly changing world, with creative entrepreneurs and innovative alternatives gaining ground against the rising costs and lackluster benefits of traditional care.
