What separates good healthcare plans from low performers?

Most employers are offering full-time employees healthcare coverage even as the costs of coverage escalate.

Towers Watson (TW) and the National Business Group (NBG) conduct an annual Health Employer Survey on Purchasing Value in Health Care. Nearly 600 employers with 11.3 million workers participated.

Here are the major trends in employer coverage from the 2014 survey:

• 95% of employers offer active, full-time employees coverage
• 56% will still cover spouses
• only 30% are covering active, part-time employees, and
• just 17% cover retirees.

These “trends” have stayed relatively steady since 2012. Companies are letting part-timers seek coverage on their own since the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) passed.

Benchmark your company’s plan

TW and NBG ranked best and low performers among companies’ health insurance plans. Here are eight key performance metrics for best and low performers:

The best performers

1. 77% offer an Account-Based Health Plan (ABHP) a Health Savings Account (HSA)

2. 57% reward (or penalize) members based on tobacco use

3. 56% insist employees complete biometric screening for financial incentives

4. 51% consider new payment methodologies a factor in selecting health plan vendor

5. 47% look at Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) availability as a factor when choosing a vendor

6. 43% offer on-site health services at at least one location

7. 39% offer telemedicine for professional consultations

8. 39% use spousal surcharges

The low performers

1. 55% offer an ABHP with an HSA

2. 31% reward (or penalize) based on tobacco use

3. 32% make employees must complete biometric screening for financial incentives

4. 41% consider new payment methodologies a factor in selecting health plan vendor

5. 32% weigh PCMH availability as a factor when choosing a vendor

6. 27% offer on-site health services at at least one location

7. 25% offer telemedicine for professional consultations

8. 20% use spousal surcharges

To download the TW/NBG report, click here.