What Should Your Employee Benefit Plan Really Cost?

A great health benefits package helps you recruit and retain top notch employees. The better your benefit plan, the better your employee talent pool will be. But benefit plans are expensive. How do you balance the costs and benefits to your company?

Average Cost of Healthcare

On average, the total cost of healthcare comes to about $14,800 per person, per year. This includes premiums and out-of-pocket expenses for your employees and their dependents. Most organizations cover about 70% of the total cost. This leaves about $4,400 for employees to pay out-of-pocket when they need to see a doctor. Nobody likes to pay extra fees for health care- especially when it’s supposed to be covered.

An Overview on How Expense Reduction Can Save on Healthcare Costs

An expense reduction consultant can help you:

• Reduce the cost of out-of-pocket services to your employees
• Build the right benefit plan for your team
• Ensure that you’re getting the best deals from your benefits broker
• Ensure that your employees are getting the best care available
• Identify the best employer-employee cost sharing ratio for your business

Using Telehealth is a Popular and Convenient Way to Save on Healthcare

The National Business Group on Health recently conducted a series of surveys exploring how large companies design their benefit packages. A popular theme within the results of these surveys includes utilizing cost-effective telehealth services. These services allow for remote meetings with doctors via telephone or computer to discuss, diagnose, and monitor mild health concerns and overall well being. In other words, your employees can speak to a doctor without having to miss work or pay out-of-pocket for a simple diagnosis. They won’t even need to leave their desk.

In-Network Healthcare Plans Can Be Cost-Effective, but Have Drawbacks

The surveys also observe trends regarding an increased use of in-network healthcare solutions. This can be very cost effective for employers. However, it can also create significant barriers for new employees. In fact, plans that force people to change doctors when they accept a position with you can be very unappealing. It could mean that they take a competitor’s offer instead of yours. We can help you find solutions that offer wider networks of coverage.

Other Considerations to Designing a Benefits Package

There are a variety of other questions and concerns that you should ask yourself when designing your benefit package.

• Do you offer disability?
• Is there a life insurance policy available?
• Do your benefits cover dental procedures?
• What about a new pair of glasses or LASIK?

We can guide you toward developing a strategy that balances employee needs, happiness and affordability. We can also let you know what other companies are doing to keep their talented employees happy. Together, we’ll help you map out all of your options so you can offer the most competitive benefits package within your budget.