In Focus

There was a recent article in a North Carolina newspaper about a local surgeon, Dr. Gajendra Singh, who wanted to offer transparently priced, low-cost services to assist patients that are candidates for general or laparoscopic surgeries.

What was fascinating about the article wasn’t that the surgeon was still practicing independently (which seems very rare these days), or that he posts the cost of an x-ray on his front door (which is also rare, and admirable). The intriguing part was that he wanted to purchase an MRI machine and the State of North Carolina wouldn’t permit it. read more…

When employees ponder their lives in retirement, hobbies, travel, and mid-afternoon naps are likely more top-of-mind than paying for healthcare.

Even with Medicare picking up the majority of healthcare expenses for post-65 retirees, the average couple will still need $390,000* to cover medical expenses during retirement. And that doesn’t even include long-term care. The problem today is that the average retirement savings for a couple in their 60s is only $152,000**. read more…

We just received another invitation to take advantage of an insurance company’s “supplemental compensation program.” Every time we see these solicitations, we feel our blood pressure rise. It certainly reinforces the practice of insurance companies referring to brokers as their “producers.” read more…

An estimated 96 percent of large employers offer telemedicine services to their employees. While independent services like Teladoc have been around for more than a decade, now most insurance providers offer their own telemedicine programs as an add-on service to employers.

Health plan sponsors have added these programs to combat the rising cost of emergency room and urgent care services. However, as employer adoption of telemedicine grows, it hasn’t become any easier to determine if the goal of reducing cost is being achieved. In fact, some research shows that telemedicine may actually be increasing health plan costs. read more…

Hold your questions until the end, please.

You know what we can’t stand about a text message announcement? You cannot respond with a question. The same goes for an email. Sometimes the info is timely and useful, but what if you have a follow-up question or require a point of clarification?

Those forms of communication may work well for quick reminders (think “Don’t forget to enroll” or “Three more days until open enrollment closes”), but what about the big stuff? We’re talking more complicated or nuanced items like changes in cost sharing, a new type of plan, or updated eligibility rules. read more…