Employers are looking into alternate approaches to providing healthcare to their workers, according to a study.
About 13 percent of fully-insured and self-funded employers indicated they "definitely" or "probably" will not continue to sponsor employee coverage at all, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Employer Health Plan Study. More than 6,500 employers of varying size were surveyed.
On the other hand, nearly half of employers said it is likely they will switch to a defined contribution model within a private exchange, partly in the hope of reducing costs. At the same time, this method would offer employees some choices and control over the type of coverage they end up with. Given that workers are also concerned with the cost of their employee benefits, the plan may prove a wise one.
In fact, employees and employers alike indicated they are more concerned with cost than with the service experience their health plans provide. Although they hold differing opinions as to why healthcare costs are high and growing right now, they remain focused on reducing them. Employers also indicated they might use vouchers or other options to help workers purchase coverage.
