by Mike Barrett | Apr 22, 2016 | Employer Issues, General Health, General Insurance Issues, Health Policy, Healthcare Issues, Healthcare Reform
We know you get updated on a lot of healthcare issues. Just in case you missed our previous announcement this is worth repeating for those employers in the under 50 segment who have kept pre-ACA plans in place. For our under 50 employee groups, we were ramping up to...
by Tom Barrett | Mar 18, 2016 | Employer Issues, General Health, General Insurance Issues, Health Policy, Healthcare Issues, Healthcare Reform
During several recent meetings this question was posed a number of times by curious employees and a few their employers. It seems many folks are still unclear about the exemptions. Many also were unclear on the amount of the penalties. Below is a summary on exemptions...
by Tom Barrett | Mar 9, 2016 | Employer Issues, General Health, General Insurance Issues, Health Policy, Healthcare Issues, Managed Care - Group Health, Providers
Use of retail clinics leads to higher costs. Seems a bit counter-intuitive doesn’t it? You’d think that the use of retail clinics like those found in some CVS and Kroger stores and typically staffed by nurse practitioners would be apt to lower total costs. In fact...
by Mike Barrett | Mar 7, 2016 | Employer Issues, General Health, General Insurance Issues, Health Policy, Healthcare Issues, Healthcare Reform, Managed Care - Group Health, National News, Uncategorized
This is hot off the presses. The most important announcement this past week is that HHS published the increased out-of-pocket regulations for 2017. Originally, the ACA was to cap deductibles at $2,000. That seems like a long time ago and was never really followed. In...
by Mike Barrett | Feb 8, 2016 | Employer Issues, Health Policy, Healthcare Issues, Healthcare Reform, Managed Care - Group Health, Pharmacy Costs, Pharmacy, PBMs and Pharma Costs, Providers, Uncategorized
We are finding some crazy Rx trends that are translating into real world cost and care issues for our clients and their employees. Here’s a prime example. We recently found that a type 2 diabetes drug (GLUMETZA) increased in cost by 900%, nearly overnight. After...
