Changes to federal health care law and rising medical costs have many organizations reviewing existing and future benefits offerings. The Health Care Benefits Benchmarking Survey provides a timely and accurate measurement of health care plan costs that can serve as a valuable reference when considering plan changes and cost-saving strategies. The report features sections on general benefits practices, general features of medical coverage, and co-payment requirements, as well as prescription drug plans, dental benefits, vision benefits, and more. Data are presented by organization sector, industry group, organization size (number of employees), and geographic region.
Employers, particularly small businesses, are continuing to implement less costly health care options because of rising medical costs. Rather than offering changes in traditional plans, many employers are moving to High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) coupled with a Health Savings Account (HSA).
Other employers are just reducing benefit levels overall by increasing employee contributions, deductibles, co-payments, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximums. Cost management strategies such as disease management, health promotions, and wellness programs are also being used by many employers to counter increasing costs. Benchmarking health plan costs and practices with other employers in the external marketplace is the first step in evaluating the effectiveness of current benefits strategies or potential changes.
The annual Health Care Benefits Benchmarking Survey assists employers in making competitive decisions about their offerings. Participation for the sixth edition of the survey was solicited from US employers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, as well as government entities. The survey is available online for $289 via http://salary-surveys.erieri.com. For more information, contact ERI Salary Surveys at survey.sales@erieri.com.
