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Insurance

Report: Health benefit costs projected to rise 9.9% this year

01/08/2024
The WTW Global Medical Trends Survey found the cost of medical care jumped from 7.4% in 2022 to a record high of 10.7% in 2023. The insurer-reported cost trend for 2024 is projected to increase by an average of 9.9%.

Benefits lexicon: Center of Excellence

01/08/2024
Center of Excellence is one of several health-care cost control strategies that has gained currency in recent years.

Family health insurance is no longer affordable through small employers

12/20/2023
Workers at small firms—those with fewer than 200 employees—would need to pay $8,334 on average toward the annual premiums for family coverage. But an employee’s share of premiums is often much more expensive—a quarter of covered workers at small firms must pay $12,000 or more annually.

Health insurance coverage of blockbuster meds depends on prescription

12/20/2023
Many of your employees may be asking whether blockbuster weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are covered by your health plan. The answer, according to a new survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, probably depends on how the prescription is written.

As pharmaceutical prices soar, manage employee expectations about health-care costs

11/21/2023
It’s December, and by now your employees have already selected their preferred health plan for 2024. Chances are, you saw a significant increase in the cost of health insurance premiums. The cost of covering so-called blockbuster specialty drugs likely pushed costs higher.

Health-benefits costs jumped 5.2% in 2023 due to inflation, higher pharma costs

11/20/2023
The average per-employee cost of employer-sponsored health insurance rose by 5.2% in 2023 to reach $15,797. That’s a big jump compared to 2022, according to the Mercer consulting firm’s annual National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans.

Cost of employer-sponsored health insurance rose 7% this year, totaling almost $24K

10/30/2023
Amid rising inflation, annual family premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance climbed an average of 7% this year to reach $23,968, a sharp departure from virtually no growth in premiums last year, the 2023 benchmark KFF Employer Health Benefits Survey finds.

Benefits: Employers target health-care costs, mental health as they look toward 2024

10/23/2023
More than six out of 10 employers responding to a new Willis Towers Watson survey agree about their primary concerns as they anticipate managing health benefits in 2024.

Brace for higher health-care costs in 2024

10/23/2023
What accounts for the predicted increases? One factor may be Food and Drug Administration approval of several blockbuster drugs officially meant to treat diabetes but used off-label to help patients lose weight.

Is your best benefits move cutting benefits?

09/27/2023
Are you still having trouble attracting enough qualified candidates for crucial open positions? If that’s the case, beware cutting back on benefits—especially those that show you are a desirable place to work.