1. TALKING POINTS – 5 ELEMENTS

2. TALKING POINTS – 5 ELEMENTS TO OPERATIONALIZE YOUR BENEFITS STRATEGY
Industry Update – HealthCare Industry
Health systems consolidation
ACOs – different kinds
Increase in PAs/NPs
Specialty Drugs – 1% of all scripts; 25% of spending
Venture capital – healthcare toppled technology in 2nd quarter of 2014; 50% of all VC money into healthcare
Industry Update – Employers
ACA Reporting – Hourly & 6055/6056
Increase in Account-Based Plans – AHIP study = 17.4m in 2014
Financing Dependents? – UPS spousal waiver
Alternative funding methods – Self, Level, and Captives
Staying in the ‘game’ – Mercer study = 4% of large employers, 16% of mid-market to small employers will ‘leave’ the game
Benefits Buyers
Discuss each category
Thought Exercise – Where do you fit now? Do you think you fit in one category, but in practice fit in another? Where do you want to go? What needs to happen to get you there?

3. TALKING POINTS – 5 ELEMENTS TO OPERATIONALIZE YOUR BENEFITS STRATEGY
Technology
Share story from Florida meeting
HRIS or Benefits Technology?
What’s Happening? Maxwell video
What should we be doing?
Tech-savvy or Luddite? Do you really have a choice?
Review mobile capabilities – mobile purchasing to grow by 61% by 2015…some 47 billion transactions; where we buy things has changed
Review marketplace – Lots of new companies, money, and technology platforms
Technology Champion – Who can help you figure this out?
Communication
Yes, it’s important
What’s Happening? Chart & Video
Examples: Benefits statements, YouTube Videos, GoPro
Year-round benefits communication
Use different mediums
Communication = building Education & Awareness
Internal expertise or outsource it

4. TALKING POINTS – 5 ELEMENTS TO OPERATIONALIZE YOUR BENEFITS STRATEGY
Compliance
What’s Happening? More compliance due to ACA, increase in DOL audits, share some examples (small doctor office, example of process from DOL)
What should we be doing?
Turn info into action – systematize the information
Get an ERISA attorney
Compliance to workflow – generally the workflow, not the area of compliance
Insource vs Outsource – how much can you do yourself and how much can you outsource? There are a bunch of partners, TPAs, payroll vendors, etc. who do this work
Data
What’s Happening?
Financing Benefits – more funding strategies, interest in defined-contribution (employer as financier), more scrutiny on Rx management, third-party actuarial services
Health & Wellness – now part of overall benefits strategy, incentives, personal responsibility, (EEOC)
Employee Demographics – workforce dynamics changing, impact of millennials, what about those baby-boomers?

5. TALKING POINTS – 5 ELEMENTS TO OPERATIONALIZE YOUR BENEFITS STRATEGY
Enrollment
What’s Happening?
Convergence of technology, communication and enrollment
Changed forever with ACA
Ongoing enrollment = more compliance now than ever
Increased amount of time to educate & communicate
Individual shopping experience - pick the benefits that fit your specific situation
What should we be doing?
Review technology and communication strategy
Customize the employee experience – Netflix Video
Brand your benefits materials
Plan early and communicate often
Vision for Future of Benefits
Technology is the central component to benefits = it organizes and streamlines the other 4 categories
Employees will ‘subscribe’ to benefits programs
Expansion of benefits at all size employers
Employer = financier, Employee = decision-maker
Mobile device will be the interface into benefits