Consumer-directed health plans remain a best bet to control health care costs

Sandy Shapiro

Vice President Sales, Community Accounts

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota

www.bluecrossmn.com

Topic: Healthcare

Of all the health plans out there, CDHPs do the best job of getting people to become smart health care consumers. After all, the money people spend is their own. CDHPs are changing the way employers deliver health plan benefits and are becoming more accepted by employees and employers.

These plans offer lower premiums for employers, while encouraging employees to be more engaged in their health and health care. CDHP enrollment is climbing fast, this year an estimated 16 million Americans will be covered by a high-deductible health plan paired with a health savings account (HSA) or health reimbursement arrangement (HRA).

Engaging employees in their health plan and their health

No other plan model has such built-in motivation for consumer engagement and making smart health care decisions. Recent Blue Cross research indicates that CDHP members:

• Appear to be more prudent users of their health plan
• Used the emergency room 11 percent less often
• Take greater advantage of prevention services (about 10 percent higher vs. traditional plan members)

Aside from the inherent cost-sharing opportunities, one benefit of CDHPs is that they are changing how employees purchase health care because their greatest value is that they help employees recognize that their most important asset isn't their money - it's their health! That opens the door to controlling health care costs. Ideally, we want people to spend health care dollars like it's their money, and manage their health like it's a cherished asset. From an employer's perspective, the message is even simpler - good health is good business.

But, are you truly ready to move to a consumer-directed health plan?

CDHPs are fundamentally different from traditional plans and require new thinking and action from both employers and employees. Take the following employer-readiness quiz to find out if your company is ready to move to a CDHP. Is:

• executive management supportive of and committed to consumer-directed health care?
• your company's belief that members should be more engaged in their health care decisions?
• your company's belief that it is important to help employees save for their future medical expenses?
• one of the most important benefit goals for your company to offer a health plan that is easy for your employees to understand and use?
• change well received by your employees when you've implemented changes in the past?
• your company currently offering a flexible spending account (FSA)?
• your company willing to contribute to an account-based plan?
• your company willing to allocate the necessary resources for ongoing education and support?
• your company willing to invest in wellness programs, such as smoking cessation, weight management and health risk assessments, to help keep employees healthy and reduce future high-cost utilization?

If you answered yes to the majority of these statements, now may be the time to consider offering your employees the choice of a CDHP during next open enrollment session. Blue Cross has found that early, frequent and consistent communication is key to helping your employees successfully transition to a CDHP and helping control health care costs.