Since the ACA was enacted eight years ago, many employers are re-examining employee benefits in an effort to manage costs, navigate changing regulations, and expand their plan options. Self-funded plans are one way that's happening.
In 2017, the UBA Health Plan survey revealed that self-funded plans have increased by 12.8% in the past year overall, and just less than two-thirds of all large employers’ plans are self-funded.
Here are six of the reasons why employers are opting for self-funded plans:
With all of the focus that is put into managing and controlling health care costs today, it amazes me how many organizations still look past one of the most effective and least disruptive cost-saving strategies available to employers with 150 or more covered employees – self-funding your dental plan. There is a reason why dental insurers are not quick to suggest making a switch to a self-funded arrangement … it is called profit!
More and more employers—especially mid to large size groups—are considering different types of self-insured financing mechanisms. UBA Partners are at the forefront of helping employers understand their options, and as a group of independent advisors bound by a code of conduct to actively cultivate, validate and share wisdom, we offer advisors and employers unparalleled local and national expertise.
With the rising cost of health insurance and the need to provide coverage to employees, we have noticed many employers taking advantage of becoming self-insured. While being self-insured isn’t for everyone, there are definite advantages, such as the possibility of saving money – especially if you have a healthy staff. But self-insured employer groups typically can only self-insure to a certain level. In other words, they can only absorb so much of the risk associated with health care cost. Stop-loss insurance is an insurance product that provides financial protection against the high cost of catastrophic health insurance claims. Understanding the different types of stop-loss is one of the first steps in knowing if self-funding the right solution for your group.
Self-funding is a very hot topic these days for a number of reasons. For small group employers offering a self-funded plan this means they can charge a composite premium rate based on the employee population versus the community rates that are based on each individual enrollee’s age. For all employer sizes this also means that they are not subject to all of the taxes under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which alone can translate into a savings of 3% to 4% of their premiums..jpg?width=234&height=154&name=istock_000017448548xsmall_(2).jpg)
By Josie Martinez, Senior Partner and Legal Counsel