Look Beyond Cost in Evaluating Health Plan Carriers
Although
by some accounts health plan cost increases moderated in 2003,
the hikes still were substantial, by any definition of the
word. Mercer Human Resource Consulting reported an average
10% health plan cost increase, and projected this figure would
rise to 13% for 2004. The Institute of Management and Administration,
citing a survey by the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers,
reported 10%-20% price increases for group medical insurance
premiums during the second half of 2003.
Premium
increases such as these are higher than many businesses are
willing to absorb. An employer must decide whether to scale
back benefits, pass on all or part of the increase to employees,
or seek a more cost-effective plan with a different carrier.
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Coping
with Language Barriers in Benefits Communications
From
its founding, the United States has been a multi-cultural
and multi-lingual nation. This demographic reality has continued
to the present day.
Statistics
from the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) on language characteristics
and literacy illustrate the linguistic diversity of this country.
For example, according to one DOE report and based on an analysis
of Census Bureau data, during the 1980s, the number of persons
age five years and older who spoke a language other than English
increased 41%. The most significant increases were in Spanish,
Asian, and Pacific Islander languages. The report went on
to state that among those who spoke a language other than
English at home, 47% said they had difficulty speaking and
understanding English. Furthermore, a DOE survey conducted
in the 1990s reported that 10% of the population spoke no
English at all before entering school.
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Many Insurance Products Are Available to Supplement
a Primary Medical Plan
Often
the benefits paid by a primary medical plan cover only a fraction
of the true cost of a major illness or injury. An individual
suffering a severe heart attack, for example, can expect to
experience a lengthy hospital stay, followed by a period of
recuperation at home or in an extended care or rehabilitative
facility. While a primary medical plan will cover a portion
of the hospital and physician costs, the insured is likely
to be responsible for some expenses; depending on the terms
of the plan, and these may be substantial.
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Ever Heard of Direct Reimbursement Dental Plans? Here’s
What You Need to Know
Direct
reimbursement dental plans (DR) offer several advantages over
fully insured plans and have been promoted by the American
Dental Association (ADA) for years. DR plans leave the choice
of dentist entirely up to employees and dental care decisions
exclusively in the hands of employees and their dentists.
Both employees and dentists tend to prefer this arrangement
much more than with traditional plans. DR plans also have
very low administrative costs relative to a fully insured
plan. Yet this form of dental benefit has not enjoyed wide
usage by employers, perhaps because with DR there is no third
party review of claims and/or the DR plans have not been widely
marketed. Some predict these plans may soon become more widely
adopted as part of the movement to place more medical care
choices in the hands of consumers.
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