Employers don't think bearing the financial burden of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will ease any time soon. In fact, a new survey from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans says 2016 will be the most expensive to date. And, employers fear, the cost will continue to rise during the decade.
At the same time, employers aren't contemplating dropping their plans. At most, they will follow the trend of sharing more costs with employees and offering plans that allow employees to select benefits depending upon how much of the cost they are willing to pay.
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Highlights of the survey, which elicited responses from nearly 600 benefits professionals, included:
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96 percent of employers plan to continue to offer an employer-sponsored health plan;
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82 percent say compliance with the law has led to increased costs this year;
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71 percent believe the costliest years of complying with PPACA lie ahead;
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33 percent believe the largest jump in compliance costs will take place in 2016;
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27 percent believe that the largest cost increase will occur in 2018, when the Cadillac tax kicks in;
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50 percent believe their current plan would trigger the tax, but just 3 percent say they plan to pay it.
Despite concerns about the Cadillac tax on rich health plans, only 20 percent see it as their largest cost factor in the years ahead. The costs of complying with administrative tasks related to the act, and reporting/disclosure/notification costs, were much higher, a combined 32 percent. That's because few think they'll be paying the tax directly. Instead, costs related to it will involve strategies to redesign plans so they don't trigger it.
"Of those looking to avoid the tax, 53 percent have added or plan to add a high-deductible health plan. Thirteen percent report they will not incur the tax because they have already taken action to avoid it," the foundation reported.
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Dan Cook
Dan Cook is a journalist and communications consultant based in Portland, OR. During his journalism career he has been a reporter and editor for a variety of media companies, including American Lawyer Media, BusinessWeek, Newhouse Newspapers, Knight-Ridder, Time Inc., and Reuters. He specializes in health care and insurance related coverage for BenefitsPRO.
