How Are Employers Adjusting Health Benefit Strategies Amid the Pandemic?
Amid disruption precipitated by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a survey by the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions shows employers are maintaining or accelerating their health benefit strategies for 2021 and 2022.
From the article:
“Discussing the most pressing issues threatening the affordability of employer-provided health coverage for employees and their families, several key market forces were indicated by employers as presenting a significant threat:
- Drug prices (90%)
- Lack of transparency (73%)
- Hospital prices (71%)
- Surprise medical bills (58%)
- Overuse of low-value services/waste (53%)”
“Rising health care costs continue to burden our businesses and employees, and they are crowding out jobs, wages, and in the age of COVID, our economic recovery,” Elizabeth Mitchell, president and CEO of the Pacific Business Group on Health, said in a statement.
“The results of this survey reinforce employers’ justified concerns about how high drug and hospital prices, surprise medical bills, and continued overuse of low-value healthcare services threaten the health and economic security of American businesses and workers. Employers well understand that health care is broken and that they can no longer wait for the system to fix itself.”
Read the full article from ajmc.com here