Health benefit cost management continues to be a dominant concern among US employers, according to the National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans. This nationally projectable survey, conducted annually by Mercer, includes public and private organizations with 10 or more employees; 2,844 employers responded in 2011.
“Our survey results show not only the actions employers are taking to manage their health benefit costs, but where they are having success,” says Beth Umland, Mercer’s director of research for health and benefits. “For example, last year the average growth in prescription drug benefit cost was the lowest in many years, helping to slow overall health plan cost growth.”
“As we typically see, larger employers are leading the way in exploring new cost-management measures,” she adds. “For example, they’ve been the first to adopt value-based plan design, which provides financial incentives to choose and adhere to courses of treatment with the best chance for success.”
Learn about five of today’s top health benefit trends.
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For more information about this survey, visit www.mercer.com/ushealthplansurvey.
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