red states rule
09-17-2009, 10:31 PM
Another update on how the Hope and Change Express is being being received by the private sector
Employers Put Costs at the Top of Health Care Reform Priority List, According to Towers Perrin Survey
Employers Say They Will Not Absorb Any Additional Costs Resulting From Reform
STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With health care reform efforts ramping up after the summer break, many of the nation’s employers are focusing on the action in Congress and plan to adjust their benefit strategies based on how final legislation affects their costs, according to a survey of 433 HR and benefit executives from midsize and large organizations conducted by professional services firm Towers Perrin. Employers say they will not absorb any additional costs that result from reform and plan to take actions to avoid doing so, including reducing benefits, raising prices for customers and/or reducing head count.
Although not as outspoken in the reform process as many stakeholders in the health care industry, employers are watching Washington closely, with 80% monitoring developments. Nearly one in four companies (23%) in the survey are currently rethinking benefit changes in light of possible reforms, and nearly all (89%) plan to reexamine their health benefit strategies for active employees in response to the passage of health care reform legislation. And while talent management considerations such as productivity, workforce health, and recruiting and retention remain important even in a tough economy, cost issues will dominate employers’ decision making in a post-reform world, according to the survey.
“With employer health care costs rising more than 150% over the last decade, it’s no surprise that 90% of employers list cost containment as the most important health care reform goal,” said Dave Guilmette, Managing Director of the Towers Perrin Health and Welfare practice. “ Many large employers, however, feel that current reform proposals are focused on other health care issues — such as expanding coverage and reforming certain insurance practices — and they feel they have already addressed these issues within their own workforces.”
In addition, employers do not expect that reform as currently proposed will address some of the fundamental drivers of health care costs. For example, nearly two-thirds of employers (65%) believe that health care reform will have little or no impact on consumer behaviors, an area many leading employers have begun to target as one of their key cost-containment opportunities.
Nevertheless, among health care proposals currently on the table, 53% of employers believe that research on effectiveness of alternative treatments will have a positive impact on their business by, over time, influencing the quality of care, and 44% believe that reforming the health insurance market to ensure guaranteed access to coverage regardless of health status will have a positive impact. However, nearly half (47%) of survey respondents believe that an employer “pay or play” mandate would have a negative impact on businesses
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20090917005143&newsLang=en
Employers Put Costs at the Top of Health Care Reform Priority List, According to Towers Perrin Survey
Employers Say They Will Not Absorb Any Additional Costs Resulting From Reform
STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With health care reform efforts ramping up after the summer break, many of the nation’s employers are focusing on the action in Congress and plan to adjust their benefit strategies based on how final legislation affects their costs, according to a survey of 433 HR and benefit executives from midsize and large organizations conducted by professional services firm Towers Perrin. Employers say they will not absorb any additional costs that result from reform and plan to take actions to avoid doing so, including reducing benefits, raising prices for customers and/or reducing head count.
Although not as outspoken in the reform process as many stakeholders in the health care industry, employers are watching Washington closely, with 80% monitoring developments. Nearly one in four companies (23%) in the survey are currently rethinking benefit changes in light of possible reforms, and nearly all (89%) plan to reexamine their health benefit strategies for active employees in response to the passage of health care reform legislation. And while talent management considerations such as productivity, workforce health, and recruiting and retention remain important even in a tough economy, cost issues will dominate employers’ decision making in a post-reform world, according to the survey.
“With employer health care costs rising more than 150% over the last decade, it’s no surprise that 90% of employers list cost containment as the most important health care reform goal,” said Dave Guilmette, Managing Director of the Towers Perrin Health and Welfare practice. “ Many large employers, however, feel that current reform proposals are focused on other health care issues — such as expanding coverage and reforming certain insurance practices — and they feel they have already addressed these issues within their own workforces.”
In addition, employers do not expect that reform as currently proposed will address some of the fundamental drivers of health care costs. For example, nearly two-thirds of employers (65%) believe that health care reform will have little or no impact on consumer behaviors, an area many leading employers have begun to target as one of their key cost-containment opportunities.
Nevertheless, among health care proposals currently on the table, 53% of employers believe that research on effectiveness of alternative treatments will have a positive impact on their business by, over time, influencing the quality of care, and 44% believe that reforming the health insurance market to ensure guaranteed access to coverage regardless of health status will have a positive impact. However, nearly half (47%) of survey respondents believe that an employer “pay or play” mandate would have a negative impact on businesses
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20090917005143&newsLang=en