Open enrollment: get a head start.For many group health plans, open enrollment occurs in the last quarter of the year. This is a perfect opportunity to communicate with your employees key issues related to health care: * Costs are rising--It is important to remind your employees the value of using health care wisely. If your plan has a $10 copay co·pay n. A copayment. for office visits, remind them the total cost of the visit far exceeds the $10 paid at the time of service. * Prescription drugs--Remind employees to use generic drugs generic drug, a drug sold or prescribed under the nonproprietary name of its active ingredients or under a generally descriptive name rather than under a brand or trade name. whenever possible. Most plans offer two- or three-tier (architecture) three-tier - A client-server architecture in which the user interface, functional process logic ("business rules") and data storage and access are developed and maintained as independent modules, most often on separate platforms. drug card co-pay Co-pay A type of insurance policy where the insured pays a specified amount of out-of-pocket expenses for health-care services such as doctor visits and prescriptions drugs at the time the service is rendered, with the insurer paying the remaining costs. plans, and it is often in the best financial interest of the employee and the plan to choose generics. * Preventive preventive /pre·ven·tive/ (pre-vent´iv) prophylactic. pre·ven·tive or pre·ven·ta·tive adj. Preventing or slowing the course of an illness or disease; prophylactic. n. exams--If your plan covers routine preventive care Preventive care is a set of measures taken in advance of symptoms to prevent illness or injury. This type of care is best exemplified by routine physical examinations and immunizations. The emphasis is on preventing illnesses before they occur. See also
* Enrollment options--Often organizations offer more than one plan option for employees. Employees need to assess each plan option against their anticipated health-care utilization. Many employees will purchase the most costly option without taking the time to review other options and determine which plan may be the most cost effective for their anticipated needs. * Dual coverage--Often dual-income families will elect coverage under both employers' health plans. With increasing contributions, the decision to be covered under two health plans may not be cost effective. Encourage your employees to compare the annual cost of each plan to the potential benefit he/she may receive from the secondary coverage. If either employer offers an opt-out To cancel some situation or condition. See opt-in. bonus for coverage, the opt-out bonus amounts should be taken into consideration as well. Often the cost far outweighs the potential benefits. Some employees fear maintaining coverage under one health plan is a risky proposition in a fairly unstable unstable, adj 1. not firm or fixed in one place; likely to move. 2. capable of undergoing spontaneous change. A nuclide in an unstable state is called radioactive. An atom in an unstable state is called excited. economic environment. They may not be aware that federal law requires individuals the opportunity to enroll in a group health plan mid-year if they waived coverage due to other coverage and that coverage ends. Employer Cost Control Strategies Percent of employers who increased the For 2003 For 2002 employee contribution Small Employers 24% 18% Large Employers 49% 40% Percent of employers who changed plan For 2003 For 2002 designs to increase cost-sharing provisions Small Employers 19% 15% Large Employers 44% 34% Morcer Human Resource Consulting, 2003 RELATED ARTICLE: Bright Ideas--Save Money! As your organization reviews health-care alternatives, keep in mind the following ideas: * Look at the cost savings generated by potential changes independently. If adding a $200 deductible That which may be taken away or subtracted. In taxation, an item that may be subtracted from gross income or adjusted gross income in determining taxable income (e.g., interest expenses, charitable contributions, certain taxes). to hospital, surgical services and lab services generates the same saving as increasing your prescription co-pay by $10 for generic and brand name drugs, consider the likely impact on your employee base. For the most part, adding the annual deductible may impact fewer of your plan participants Plan participants Employees or other beneficiaries who are eligible to receive benefits from a company's employee benefit plan. than increasing the drug co-pay. * Benchmark your plan options and the proposed alternatives with survey data and, if possible, the benefits your competitors' offer. * Recognize that benefits are a part of compensation. If your organization's pay practices generally exceed your competition's practices, your organization could consider more drastic changes to the benefits program and remain competitive. * Consider adding Section 125 Flexible Spending Accounts flexible spending account, n an employee reimbursement account primarily funded with employee-designated salary reductions. Funds are reimbursed to the employee for health care (medical and/or dental), dependent care, and/or legal expenses and are if your plan changes involve reducing benefit levels. If employees are expected to pick up more of the cost for services, they can benefit from the pre-tax accounts. This information was supplied by Bill Wentworth, a principal at McGraw Wentworth, a member of the Detroit Regional Chamber. This page is brought to you by the Detroit Regional Chamber's Health Care Central - the hub for all business-related health-care issues. To learn more about this exciting new initiative, visit www.detroitchamber.com or call (866) MBR-LINE. |
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