Ever since the Affordable Care Act went live in October, when people without employee benefits or private coverage turned to the exchanges in order to enroll, the news cycle regarding health care in America has been highly active. Much of the discussion has focused on how employers are impacted by the health care reform law, as some companies are required to offer coverage to their staff, depending on how many people companies employ.
Recently, the Employee Benefit Research Institute assembled experts in the field to discuss the issue during a forum held in Washington, D.C.
Paul Fronstin, head of health and research at EBRI, noted that the ACA has really changed the way employee benefits work.
"[The ACA] levels the playing field like it's never been before," said Fronstin. He added that the reason for this is because up to now, the main way in which consumers got their health insurance was through their employer. The development of the exchanges provides an avenue for individuals to more effectively obtain health plans should they lose their job or be in between positions.
"One could argue workers won't need their employers any more for health benefits once the law is fully implemented and health exchanges become a viable option to job-based health benefits," he said. "That raises real issues about the future of employment-based health coverage."
Are workers ready to retire?
Another topic of discussion was retirement benefits. Similar to the health coverage that employers traditionally provide to their staff, plans that address the cost of living in retirement have also largely fallen under the purview of workplaces. However, there are more contributing factors that influence retirement readiness, including an employee's salary, retirement plan participation and if long-term health care is taken into account.
"There's a tremendous amount of variation among U.S. households," said Jack VanDerhei, EBRI research director. "Whether individual circumstances constitute a 'crisis' or not will depend on a number of factors. It's going to depend on your income quartile. It's going to depend on how many years you're eligible to participate in a defined contribution plan."
He added that another factor is what people people consider to be an "adequate" amount of retirement savings, as individuals differ in terms of how much they feel they can live on and still be comfortable.
An outflow of the ACA is greater participation in private exchanges among employers. Though the health care law was signed in 2010, it didn't really go fully into effect until last October, which was when the health exchanges opened up. Since then, interest in private exchanges has risen sharply, particularly among workplaces shifting covered employees into these marketplaces, according to new data from consulting agency Decision Resources Group.
"Although there has not been mass movement towards these private exchanges, employers are interested in exploring these options," said AnnJeanette Colwell, DRG analyst. "The increased interest in private exchanges provides an opportunity for managed care organizations to gain commercial enrollment, especially if employers begin moving their groups into single carrier exchanges."
She also stated that if employers make the jump to private exchanges, which is a defined contribution benefit model, workers will likely become more aware of how they're making their health care expenses. For example, they may opt to go with a health plan that has a high-deductible, which can shave off how much they spend on their premiums.
