In response to health care reform but as much as in the past due to rising health care costs, small and midsize employers these days are looking for something new and innovative that can help drive down the cost of employee benefits. They are looking for a solution to slow the rate of cost increase and make it more reasonable for the company to absorb on an annual basis going forward.
There are new solutions in the marketplace. There are new ideas such as funding approaches and different types of insurance that companies can bring to bear. There are a lot of theoretical approaches – whiteboard, if you will – examples of ways that companies can achieve those goals. One thing missing in the marketplace more often than not is a way to make that theoretical solution actually work at the street or practical level. A lot of employers like the theory because it gets them a bottom line, but they do not know how to execute or how to make the theory work on a real basis with their employees.
A good employee benefits broker takes his or her experience dealing with employers and, more importantly, communicating to employees to get great outcomes and marries those two worlds together to get a very achievable result that can be measured and modified over a period of time to maintain the path of cost savings and better communications.
