Tim Finnell, writing for the Memphis Daily News, takes a quick look at what employers can do to contain rising healthcare costs.
Read the full original article from Memphis Daily News.
"There is much debate about what our country should do to control cost and provide affordable insurance coverage to citizens. However, from a business owner’s standpoint, the question becomes: How can employers control their health care spend?" Finnell suggests a few options:
- Understand the tools available to accomplish your objectives: How can your organization save money while recruiting and retaining top talent?
- Consider a form of partial self-funding for smaller, predictable claims. "This can be accomplished via a health reimbursement account (HRA), a co-op plan with other like-minded employers, or level premium or minimum premium plans. These options all save money for the employer (versus the insurance company) when claims run better than expected and provide protection when claims are not favorable.”
- Make it easier and less expensive for employees to obtain care: Current options include telemedicine and mobile clinics.
- Education: "It is imperative that employers and their health care partners become the main source of education for team members so that employees are armed with the information and resources needed to make informed health care decisions."
- Encourage wellness: Strategies include wellness programs, smoking cessation tools, and gym memberships.
The return on investment for each of these strategies is different, but for partial self-insurance in particular the return can be quite large. Learn more about how organizations can provide excellent healthcare benefits while still saving a baseline of 12.5% on healthcare spend in our Quick Guide to Partial Self-Insurance:
