Open enrollment season can be a tricky time of year for employers. Of course employers want their employees to understand their benefit options, but are they doing a good job communicating those options?

Emily Bailey, Regional Managing Principal at OneDigital Northeast discusses the challenges of and tools to use during open enrollment.

As a benefits expert, what are some of the biggest challenges the industry is currently facing? How are employers and employees being affected?

First, rising costs and decreasing access to healthcare providers are some of the biggest challenges facing the benefits industry today. It is becoming increasingly difficult for employers to provide cost-effective health benefits that meet the needs of their employees. Employers are being forced to get creative and think outside the box in order to design programs that both meet the needs and fit the budget. Things like self-insurance, captives, value-based benefits designs, and even ICHRA's are becoming increasingly popular. While some of these changes don't have a major impact on the employee- many of these changes can be extremely complicated and require a high dose of participant education.