Employer Healthcare Strategies

Advantages & Disadvatages of Self-Funding 

Determining whether or not self-funded insurance is the right choice for your small business can be difficult to do. We’ve taken some of the guesswork out by compiling some of the advantages and disadvantages of self-funding. Here's what you need to know. 

3 Misconceptions About Self-Funded Insurance

When thinking of opting for an insurance plan for their employees, some small businesses automatically assume that a self-funded plan is only a good option for large employers. Not true. In fact, did you know that it is estimated that 61 percent of companies within the U.S. self-fund at least a portion of their health plan? Read on to find out about three of the common misconceptions about self-funded insurance and the truth about each of them.

There is a trend, perhaps you have noticed it: healthcare costs are increasing. Yet, the means of paying those costs is not going up at the same rate. In a country where high deductible healthcare plans are the norm, it becomes more difficult for employees to keep up with preventative care—some of them forgo it completely.

A BIG IDEA FOR SMALL TO MID-SIZED BUSINESSES

As healthcare policy costs increase, small businesses struggle to keep up with the financial demands of providing individual healthcare plans for their employees. Limited insurance can make retaining top performing employees more difficult for the company. Can you relate to these challenges? Keep reading—there is an alternative option. Self-funded insurance provides healthcare by way of a different method. It gives employers the power.

Think you're too small to benefit from an employer-sponsored clinic? Think again. A new model is emerging, empowering small and mid-sized businesses to reap the benefits of direct primary care.

Photo Credit: Breather via Unsplash 

You’re offering the best benefits you can, and your employees are still avoiding the doctor. Find out the most common barriers — and the potential solution that can dismantle them.

According to the Medscape Lifestyle Report 2016: Bias and Burnout, some of the major causes of physician burnout include: 1) too many bureaucratic tasks; 2) spending too many hours at work; 3) too many patient appointments in a day; 4) not enough income; and 5) just feeling like a cog in a wheel.

Physician burnout is a major concern for the industry and can lead to lower patient satisfaction and care quality; higher medical error rates and malpractice risk; higher physician and staff turnover; and physician substance abuse. Repeated studies have shown an average of 1 in 3 doctors suffer from symptomatic physician burnout on any given day. How can you tell if you are at risk for burnout? Here are three signs to look for:

Changes in healthcare are taking place at break neck speed. From clinical and technological advances, to financial and regulatory obligations, today’s physician are forced to adapt to transformational changes – fast. In recent years, physicians are navigating through a series of events that leave many feeling uncertain about the future. Such uncertainly is leading to unprecedented levels of stress, bias, and burnout. According to the 2016 Physicians Foundation’s Survey, physicians have had to adapt to several simultaneous changes in recent years, including:

• Expansion of health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to include 20 million people and may soon be repealed and replaced by the Trump administration.
• Passage of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization ACT (MACRA), which will totally revamp how physicians are paid by Medicare, further moving payments from “volume” to “value.”
• Implementation of ICD-10, raising the number of disease classification codes physicians use from 14,000 to 68,000
• An ongoing physician shortage, projected by the Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) to create a deficit of up to 90,400 physicians by 2025.
• The “corporatization” of healthcare, including over $400 billion in merger activity in 2015 and approximately 100 hospital/health system consolidations.

Physicians are the key drivers of healthcare quality, setting the precedent to access and cost. With an ongoing physician shortage and nearly 50% of providers experiencing burnout, the outlook of healthcare in the United States continues to cause alarm. So what is a provider to do?

A NEW APPROACH TO PRIMARY CARE 

With the healthcare industry’s emphasis on volume, not value, many physicians are left feeling overworked, ineffective, and demoralized. It’s no wonder why 43% of physicians plan to cut-back on hours, retire, take a non-clinical job, switch to “concierge” medicine, or take other measures to bring back balance.

One branch of healthcare offering primary care providers greater flexibility and work-life balance are worksite clinics. Employers are taking wellness to new heights by investing in worksite clinics that focus on one thing: improving health. The result? Lower healthcare costs by improving employee health. Leading employer-sponsored healthcare offers physicians an opportunity to be the change agent they’ve always wanted to be.