Struggling With Costs, Employers Seek New Benefit Designs

Medical costs are going up and employer plan sponsors are feeling the pressure, according to several recent surveys of health benefit purchasers. Large-group purchasers are pursuing a variety of strategies, including direct contracting and new coverage models, to offset rising medical costs and the anticipated impact of inflation on medical trend, while small-group participation seems to have grown in recent years and could see even more adoption through new coverage models.

Most surveys of plan sponsors found that purchasers, particularly large purchasers, expect medical trend around 6% next year:

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Peter Johnson

Peter Johnson

Peter has worked as a journalist since 2011 and has covered health care since 2020. At AIS Health, Peter covers trends in finance, business and policy that affect the health insurance and pharma sectors. For Health Plan Weekly, he covers all aspects of the U.S. health insurance sector, including employer-sponsored insurance, Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage and the Affordable Care Act individual marketplaces. In Radar on Drug Benefits, Peter covers the operations of (and conflicts between) pharmacy benefit managers and pharmaceutical manufacturers, with a particular focus on pricing dynamics and market access. Before joining AIS Health, Peter covered transportation, public safety and local government for various outlets in Seattle, his hometown and current place of residence. He graduated with a B.A. from Colby College.

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