☐ Renewal Follow Up and Evaluation

• What worked well during Open Enrollment this year? What could be improved upon?

• What would make the process easier next year? Are you using an online system to capture enrollment, and if not, can your broker provide one?

• Would a benefit survey to gauge employees’ experience be helpful?

• We can’t emphasize enough the importance of those carrier invoice audits to make sure everything was processed accurately. We have seen significant processing errors from the carriers this year, putting employees in the wrong plans or at incorrect rates. Please double check your bills while there’s still time to get retroactive credit on your bill for any errors.

☐ Revisit Wellness Initiatives

• What is working well and what isn’t?

• Develop a 12- to 24- month communication campaign with your broker and review initiatives and incentives quarterly.

• How will you administer your program? Will you track initiatives manually, or use a wellness platform?

• Find time to bring in biometric screenings or a flu shot clinic.

• When was the last time you checked whether your wellness plan was compliant with the latest legal guidance?

☐ Rethink Cost Containment Strategies

• Your broker should be offering regular claims reviews if reporting is available: they can also help you determine if a self-funded platform might be a good fit for your company.

• How are you driving your employees to the most efficient care delivery models?

• How are chronic health conditions being managed? Do your employees know about the free coaching and disease management programs that can help them? Are there any other barriers that haven’t been considered?

☐ Teach Employees Better Consumerism

• Employees who don’t understand the health system can drive up your costs, so consider a mid-year benefits review to educate them on telemedicine, convenience clinics, and other resources. 

Another significant area employers should address outside of renewal is their compliance with various benefits laws, especially ERISA, HIPAA, and the Affordable Care Act. This is a large topic all by itself, so stay tuned for an article addressing common misconceptions around these laws in a future issue of the Fall River Journal.

Fall River can help employers optimize an existing employee benefits package or create one from scratch. We offer complimentary consultations so that employers can discuss their needs and goals. Contact us by giving us a call or sending us a message today!