The federal government will choose health plans for hundreds of thousands of consumers whose insurers have left the Affordable Care Act marketplace unless those people opt out of the law’s exchanges or select plans on their own, under a new policy to make sure consumers maintain coverage in 2017.
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Medicare, then, has a big incentive to use house calls. So do hospital systems that can capture the savings. One is Sutter Health in Northern California, which runs the successful Advanced Illness Management program. Another is the Veterans Affairs system, which established Home Based Primary Care in 1972. The program has the highest patient satisfaction rate of any Veterans Affairs service, has cut overall costs for patients in the program by nearly 12 percent and reduced hospitalization of them by one quarter. Continue reading
A growing number of U.S. workers are covered by health insurance that sticks them with a bigger share of the medical bill but also softens that blow by providing a special account to help with the expense.
Companies are turning more to these so-called consumer-directed health plans, which push patients to shop around for the best prices for care, because they can cost less than other types of coverage and help hold down future increases. Continue reading
many regulations that rolled out over the past few years since The Affordable Care Act was enacted may leave many businesses struggling to afford proper coverage and benefits for their employees. As an experienced broker I have found that the health insurance market has changed drastically over the years. Every health insurance carrier is unique on how they rate premiums for a corporation. Many companies have been faced with increased premiums, and may find themselves struggling to maintain the added cost. One of the most common solutions is to pass more of the increase onto the employees, which can cause many to feel let down by the benefits being offered to them for their devotion to the company. It is imperative to work with an educated and experienced broker in today’s group medical market. Continue reading
When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed, many people feared that businesses Small Business Health Insurance on the Declinewould choose to stop offering health insurance and pay the penalty instead. As a result, many surveys have been conducted to determine the impact of the ACA on small business health insurance, as well as offerings made by large companies. In July 2016, the Employee Benefit Research Institute revealed findings from its latest study. Continue reading
Having an employee handbook is an essential part of any employee retention Why Do I Need an Employee Handbook for My Small Business?strategy. You may be thinking that there is little time in your day to be worried about writing a handbook, but there are many ways that doing so can save you, both financially and legally. Here are some of the most important reasons your small business needs to have an Employee Handbook. Continue reading
Employee retention rates are a common concern for many businesses, whether How to Improve Employee Retention with Tax-Free “Fringe” Benefits they are large or small. But for small businesses, employee retention is imperative because there may only be one person in each role. If an employee jumps ship, who will pick up the slack while the position is vacant? Continue reading
Like basketball players who are sick of losing a game, many health insurers who ventured into the new marketplaces are sending a clear message: We’re taking our ball and going home. Continue reading
