With each client and prospect, there is one common thread to the discussion: “It’s no longer just about….” Compliance and health insurance now go hand in hand.
Insurance is about tax. Insurance is about compliance. Insurance is about administration. And insurance is about technology solutions.
All of these facets are creeping into the conversation.
In the last decade, the two largest conversations surrounding health insurance plans focus on taxes and compliance.
Tax penalties and tax credits are the first pain point for most. Fear motivates. And the fear of tax penalties hit with the biggest stick. Hope of tax credits doesn’t have a big voice in the employer arena and rightfully so as they are only for a small population.
Compliance is the second fear factor. There have always been penalties for ERISA and Department of Labor violations, but now there are additional reporting responsibilities and additional fines from $100s to $1,000s to millions if your practices are out of line.
Insurance, right? We were talking about Insurance?
Once the blood pressure comes down a little bit, fear shows its face in a new way. It’s all got to be done so the duties become personalized, and quickly the search for efficient and accurate solutions begins the conversation about technology and automation of the mundane.
We get excited about this step. Not because we all wanted to be programmers or data analysts when we were kids, but it’s the first step back to focusing on what we love. Once we automate the fixed and absolute rules two things happen.
#1. You and your personnel let fear of a burden subside and hope of manageable and meaningful work performance becomes a possibility.
#2. The conversation becomes about an effective and meaningful plan. Designing the plans and paying for a health or dental or disability takes attention. This means improving your life and the lives of your employees and their families is center stage. The value proposition for the money you spend is now squarely back and the main objective, a benefit for your employees.
The “It’s no longer about…” statement will creep up here and there, but the solutions are in place for a way out and a way back to the items that are most important. Compliance and health insurance doesn’t have to be complicated!