Less than two years ago, an article in CFO featured this headline. “Private Exchanges” Could Trigger Health-Benefits Revolution This prediction has already come true and a new Accenture study projects that employee enrollment in private exchanges will reach 40 million by 2018. What’s even more surprising, however, is that the leaders of this revolution often are CFOs. A Towers Watson survey last year of 420 midsize and large companies found that 46% of CFOs have become increasingly involved in health care strategy decisions. One of those CFOs on the front lines is Tom VandenBosch of Allied Electric Inc. in Grand Rapids. A recent article reports that Allied Electric has always taken pride in paying the entire health insurance premium for its employees. To maintain that level of benefits in the current year, the company turned to a defined contribution benefit model—the GlidePath private health exchange. Through online enrollment, Allied Electric’s 135 employees could choose the GlidePath plan that worked best for them from five benefits packages. This solution not only enabled the company to continue its practice of paying for employees’ premiums, but also helped the company diminish an expected increase in health care costs.
“GlidePath gave us a nice mix to offer our employees and let them do a little bit of shopping,” said VandenBosch.
A transparent view of health care and its costs can empower employees to become better health care consumers. In a recent presentation to CFOs, Aon Hewitt reported that 75% of private health insurance enrollees:
- Had a good understanding of how they shared the cost of group medical coverage with their employers.
- Felt confident they chose the health plan that offered the best value for them and their families.
An added benefit, according to VandenBosch, was that the enrollment process made employees much more aware of how much the company was paying for their health coverage, since they could see the premium for each benefit package. “This was a huge eye-opener for a lot of people,” he said. “I had some who just come back and say, ‘Wow.’ People now understand there is a cost to their health insurance.” More than 40 Michigan employers with 25,000 members now use the GlidePath private exchange, which offers 10 different benefits packages. For more information or to request a quote, visit GlidePathBenefits.com. GlidePath Rising benefit costs is a challenge for all companies. GlidePath from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network offers your mid-size company an innovative way to manage spending and risk. It can transform the way you finance your company's health insurance coverage. With GlidePath's defined-contribution solution, you can determine your company's health benefit budget and simplify the administrative work that goes along with offering health benefits.
