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Enjoy your medical JB no voters.

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It's all about cost shifting.

"How to Make Consumer-Driven Health Care Work for You (the Employer)
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Issue
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Today, employers are faced with health insurance costs that are rising much more quickly than inflation or wages. To stem the tide, many employers increase employees’ health plan contributions, deductibles, copayments and out-of-pocket limits. But these changes are unpopular and fail to address the underlying problem—health care utilization. The number of employers adopting a Consumer Driven Health Care (CDHC) approach has increased sevenfold since 2003. However, many employers are finding CDHC to be a mixed blessing, at best. While CDHC is a potential solution, few plan designs include the three elements necessary for changing consumer behavior and decision-making: incentives, education and involvement.

Some employers have offered a qualified High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP)-Health Savings Account (HSA) in addition to a more traditional plan, only to have minimal participation. Other employers have paired a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) with an HDHP, only to find employees frustrated with increased out-of-pocket expenses.

Solution

A short-term solution does not exist. Instead, what is needed is a long-term strategy that will likely take at least three years to implement. During each year of the campaign, incentives to participate will change as will direct employee enrollments. Education must be ongoing. Employees must learn new skills, like how to interpret an explanation of benefits and how to shop for value and quality in health care outcomes. Involvement is a must; all participants must become more aware of how their health care dollars are spent.

A transition campaign might take this form:

• Year 1. The employer offers the traditional (low deductible) plan with a Health FSA. The employer encourages consumer-driven behavior by seeding the account or providing matching funds up to a certain dollar amount.

• Year 2. The employer offers the same options as Year 1, but adds an HDHP and pairs it with an HRA. In Year 2, there should be sufficient incentives to drive participation toward the HDHP-HRA model. Examples might include much lower HDHP premiums, no employer funding of the FSA or enhanced wellness and preventive care benefits for HDHP-HRA participants.

• Year 3. The employer offers the HRA once again and replaces the traditional plan and Health FSA with an HDHP and a Health Savings Account (HSA). Incentives (such as premium contributions) should drive participation toward the HSA.

• Year 4 and beyond. The employer could then move away from the HRA at some point and offer a HDHP-HSA as the only option. Each year, the employer should reinforce the idea that health care consumerism is a partnership between employer and employee to reduce overall health care costs.


Explanation

Many American health consumers remain unaware of the true costs of health care. Thus, any changes in health plans which result in more up front out–of-pocket expenses (even if there are long-term savings) are likely to meet resistance. Many employees consider health expenses in terms of co-pays, and not in terms of the entire cost of the service. Immediate replacement of a traditional plan with a HDHP-HSA model is typically not well received. The purpose of the multi-year plan outlined here is to gradually increase employee familiarity with the true cost of their medical expenses.
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From Cathy Tripp, National Leader of Consumerism (Benefits Consultant at Towers Watson)--

Lessons Learned

Early adopters will tell you the CDHP journey hasn’t always been smooth sailing. Many have faced administration, communication and integration challenges, and some have found low enrollment numbers disheartening. Lessons learned from these trailblazing employers should be taken to heart:


1. Communicate, communicate, communicate.

2. Change or eliminate the popular benefit plan so employees have to pay attention at enrollment.

3. Allow enough lead time to thoroughly test systems and plan setup and data flows between vendors and administrators.

4. Reduce CDHP premium contribution levels to be lower than in current plans to drive enrollment."
 
A Health Savings Account is money that is yours to keep. You are thinking of a HRA which is an account based on use or lose every year.
If you have the investable income, you may even want to pay for all medical expenses out of pocket so as to save as much as possible in the HSA. After age 65, it's identical to a pre-tax IRA account.
http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/benefits/articles/pages/hsasvshras.aspx


A good HSA long term strategy...
http://news.nhealth.com/04232009Introducing the HSA Strategy.pdf

Thanks for the info.
 
As it should be. Fact is, health care costs are going through the roof. If you make healthy choices (eat well, exercise, don't smoke), your health care costs should reflect those choices. Instead, those who aren't high users of the expensive and growing healthcare system subsidize those who are.
What's your solution?
 
Unhealthy choices are indeed bad, but many times bad things happens to good people. Examples we have already seen here.

Want to penalize bad choices, fair enough, no problem with that, some companies do, but where does one draw the line on that one? What percentage over target weight, how many drinks a week, steaks? Should one have to have a complete blood panel done every year to to not see deductibles go up?
 
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...If our annual costs change, we can always revert to a low deductible plan ...

Priceless ..

So you admit that a CDHP sucks and doesn't save you money. A CDHP only saves money "if".

What happens when participation in the low deductible medical plan is reduced and as you freely admit adverse selection takes over? In other words less healthly people and more 'high' users? The low deductible plan goes away (unless of course it a CBA benefit) because costs skyrocket.

Good luck ...

A fool and his health care will soon be parted. Don't go snow skiing or have kids ...
 
As it should be. Fact is, health care costs are going through the roof. If you make healthy choices (eat well, exercise, don't smoke), your health care costs should reflect those choices. Instead, those who aren't high users of the expensive and growing healthcare system subsidize those who are.
What's your solution?

Hook line and sinker ... Hook line and sinker.

What life choice is MS, testicular cancer, lymphoma, Autism, Type I diabetes, etc.

You are a fool and will sooner or later will be parted with your saving unless you are lucky. Not because you made 'healthly choices'.

Also don't have kids because they are always delivered healthily with no issues between 3 months prior to birth and 26 years old. Never, ever, never even if they eat Broccoli with every meal.
 
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Happened to me in May, you were off, it was $450 plus the 23hr 4 day that I called in for and of course by day 2 couldn't call in well cause, well ya know...

Dude ... don't go to the doctor. Tough it out and save your HRA for the important stuff. geeezzzz.

5 year old daughter slipped playing on the monkey bars. Bashed her head and eye socket.

Stupid life choice I made allowing her to play.

Emergency room ... 4 staples ... CT Scan to make sure her swollen shut eye optical bone was not crushed (sure could have just said: Naaaa we will just see how it heals 'cause I want to save the $395.00 in my HRA). After all the airline I work for now calls me a consumer of health care. I call it a transfer of health care costs but who I'm I to argue with a PR company and their award winning teleprompter scripts and posters.

There goes 2 years of HRA savings in less than a split second and it is only June. Hope my shoulder I injured playing football in high school doesn't need to be repaired soon. I need to save for another 3 years to pay for it. Maybe if I eat granola for breakfast my shoulder will heal?
 
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Having a high deductible still covers you, but at a well, higher deductible. Cancer, broken stuff, covered.
I never insinuated that a high deductible is for everyone. It does have it's place, however, for low users of the medical establishment (older, fatter, kids). If I have major surgery now, my deductible is only $4K which is paid out of the HSA we have accrued. Every penny on top is covered. 100%. When we have kids, you better believe we will switch to a lower deductible, higher premium plan and use all the jack we have saved to pay the premiums and deductibles.
Now, jblu going to an all high deductible HSA plan? Well, that's what unions Help protect from. Get a union to protect from this, quit and join a union shop, or suck it up. Management, is management, is management.
 
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JJ,

You have a point, and yes there might be a place for a high deductible plan, apparently you like it, I think most won't, but that is just my guess. Particularily not if it is the ONLY choice.

I cannot say how it will play out here, but I think you are entertaining a bit of a dream, if you think the low deductible plan isn't also on the chopping block.

It's too easy for them to take and so hard to gain it back.

Premiums and deductibles are already much higher here than other places. Yet, they want more and being non union, they are able to do just that.

"Thank you Sir, may I have another!"
 
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Having a high deductible still covers you, but at a well, higher deductible. Cancer, broken stuff, covered.
I never insinuated that a high deductible is for everyone. It does have it's place, however, for low users of the medical establishment (older, fatter, kids). If I have major surgery now, my deductible is only $4K which is paid out of the HSA we have accrued. Every penny on top is covered. 100%. When we have kids, you better believe we will switch to a lower deductible, higher premium plan and use all the jack we have saved to pay the premiums and deductibles.
Now, jblu going to an all high deductible HSA plan? Well, that's what unions Help protect from. Get a union to protect from this, quit and join a union shop, or suck it up. Management, is management, is management.

You were lucky.

Your HRA has worked because you did not need it. You bought into the idea that behavior determines medical expenses and that is just flat out wrong.

The idea that you will participate in the HDMP until you need it is exactly the thinking that will cause the low deductible plan to be terminated.

You are falling hook line and sinker for the ploy of driving so called healthy employees to the HDMP and high users to the low deductible plan.

It is simple math at that point. The low deductive plan will become unsustainable because there are not enough low users to fund the expenses of others. That is the principle of insurance - all insurance. Except YOU then go one step further and try to pin these expenses upon the high users behavior. It doesn't work that way over an entire population. For every fat guy with with a cardio issue there is a skinny guy with a cardio issue because has more to do with family history than whether they eat granola.
 
And keep in mind JB is the only airline that kicks their pilots off the company insurance when on disability. Enjoy paying your medical expenses when on disability. Medical bankruptcy.
 
You were lucky.

Your HRA has worked because you did not need it. You bought into the idea that behavior determines medical expenses and that is just flat out wrong.

The idea that you will participate in the HDMP until you need it is exactly the thinking that will cause the low deductible plan to be terminated.

You are falling hook line and sinker for the ploy of driving so called healthy employees to the HDMP and high users to the low deductible plan.

It is simple math at that point. The low deductive plan will become unsustainable because there are not enough low users to fund the expenses of others. That is the principle of insurance - all insurance. Except YOU then go one step further and try to pin these expenses upon the high users behavior. It doesn't work that way over an entire population. For every fat guy with with a cardio issue there is a skinny guy with a cardio issue because has more to do with family history than whether they eat granola.

First of all it's an HSA. Big difference. Secondly, I am not lucky. I have employed a strategy which has put a ton more money in my future healthcare account while not affecting my healthcare coverage one bit. I don't rely on the whims of management to determine what my coverage and costs will be. Apparently, you do.
I don't expect social security to be around when I retire. Apparently many do and don't plan for the possibility of its demise. Just as many don't plan for the demise/erosion of company healthcare plans. Good luck either way.
 
First of all it's an HSA. Big difference. Secondly, I am not lucky. I have employed a strategy which has put a ton more money in my future healthcare account while not affecting my healthcare coverage one bit. I don't rely on the whims of management to determine what my coverage and costs will be. Apparently, you do.
I don't expect social security to be around when I retire. Apparently many do and don't plan for the possibility of its demise. Just as many don't plan for the demise/erosion of company healthcare plans. Good luck either way.
The pilot or family member who develops MS failed to plan?

Huh?

The only way you can put a 'ton more money' in a HSA or HRA is being lucky with your health and your spouses health.

If you don't realize that luck is not scaleable across 1000's of your fellow employees and you instead blame them for not being as smart as you (your plan) or that you made better choices (healthy choices) then you really have no idea that the major driver of most major catastrophic diseases and illness is NOT life style choices; it is genetics (family history).

If you had anything to do with your family history or which family you were born into then - you are correct you are smarter than everyone else.

I think you are just a Dumass, who thinks his situation is scalable for 1000's of other employees and their families and a person how was quick to fall for the talking point that "unhealthily choices are the major driver of the growth in health care expenses". That is total crap. The growth is simply technology and access to it.

If you want to lower the cost of health care then we have to limit access to it and that is what a CHDP does. It gives a $10.00 hour ramper a $2,500 deductible not because it make them 'healthier' but because it is cheaper for the company.

Check back in a year or two when your planned move back to the low deductible plan fails because it is no longer sustainable.
 
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No union will be able to change the healthcare issue that is being created for everyone who works for a large company come 2014. Thanks to Obamacare, most large companies are transitioning to these high deductible plans and will ultimately dump all health insurance and pay the $2000 per employee fine. No union can change the laws of this country nor the greed of these companies!
 
No union will be able to change the healthcare issue that is being created for everyone who works for a large company come 2014. Thanks to Obamacare, most large companies are transitioning to these high deductible plans and will ultimately dump all health insurance and pay the $2000 per employee fine. No union can change the laws of this country nor the greed of these companies!

Incorrect.
 
Angry much? $28K HSA account and growing with a $5K MAX deductible should cover my impending MS nicely. If you think people's lifestyle choices have no effect on growing healthcare costs, then I'm not sure logic plays a part in your world. There's a direct correlation between lifestyle and health costs. Using the example of lance Armstrong and cancer is a straw man argument. A "dumass" in your words, has no catastrophic insurance. That's why I have a supplemental cancer policy with Aflac. Think your company insurance sufficiently covers you? What if you have to quit your job to take care of the kids because your spouse can't care for themselves? I bring this up because my cousin had lymphoma, but had a supplemental policy which entirely paid for his lost income and every single penny he would have otherwise had to pay for had he simply been covered by a traditional low deductible (or high deductible) plan. Your best bet to keep costs controlled is to bring a union on board.
Here's what will drive healthcare costs thru the roof very soon. Take a guess why America has the largest % of adult onset diabetes in kids in the world?
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/06/14/does-america-have-diabetes-death-wish/

Good luck, and I truly mean that with the costs if your company is unwilling to take care of you.
 
"There's a direct correlation between lifestyle and health costs."

Show us the research that these costs materialize during your working years. They don't. You have ben snookered and lucky at the same time. Because in the meantime A HDMP shifts the risk to you under the false argument that a Healthy Lifestyle will save you money. The only action that saved you money is NOT using health care services.

Did your cousin have 28k in his HSA too? How much now since he/she will require at least 10 years off annual follow up and high tech diagnostic testing.

Let see: at least a $1,250 deductible plus $5,000 in out of pocket maximums expenses. I give your nest egg about 4 years with lymphoma. You are lucky. Oh ... you said you will switch back to the low deductible plan. So now only those who are sick are on the low deductible plan? Are you for real? No really are you a child or a fake? Your so called low deductible plan is unsustainable with only sick employees on the plan. Insurance is health paying for sick and your plan is fundamentally impossible in the long run.

HDMP just shift costs and risk to the employee and some employees, this is you, suck it up.

AFLAC? You changed subjects. BTW I'm a 3 time President Club winner and 7 time convention winner for the American Family Life Assurance Company.

Best parties in the world are AFLAC Conventions and President Club Trips.

My associate number is M275X.
 
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