Cut Rx Costs with a Pharmacy Benefits Program

If your business self-funds its employee health insurance, Barham Benefit Group can help you--and your employees--save money on prescription drugs by taking advantage of a new pharmacy purchasing coalition/benefit management program. We can show you a new and innovative pharmacy program that delivers cost savings along with advanced prescription management capabilities for self-funded clients.

The size and negotiating strength of the pharmacy purchasing coalition allows members to take advantage of volume discount pricing and the most generous manufacturer rebates available.

Each participating employer maintains program flexibility, using their existing plan provisions. Although the coalition does not require plan design changes, it can suggest alternatives that will help you and your employees maximize savings. And the national network of 50,000 pharmacies includes all major retail chains.

To learn more about how your company can take advantage of this program, call Barham Benefit Group at (217) 356-1978 or email jab@barhambenefit.com.

What’s Your Personal Disability Quotient?

You know that life insurance and retirement planning are important elements of financial security for you and your family. And you also know that health insurance is necessary to guard against overwhelming medical expenses.

But what if your ability to earn an income was compromised due to a disability? During your working years, you are more likely to face income loss due to disability than to death. According to the Society of Actuaries, three out of every ten workers between the ages of 25 and 65 experiences an accident or illness that keeps them out of work for three months or longer. And, according to the National Safety Council, nearly 60 percent of injuries happen off the job, which means those injuries are not covered by worker’s compensation.

Do you know what your chances are of becoming disabled and not being able to earn an income? This tool helps you calculate your PDQ (Personal Disability Quotient) and offers tips on what you can do to help prevent disability from taking a financial toll on your family. Of course, the most important tip is to have disability insurance to protect your income. Many employers offer this coverage. If yours doesn’t, you can purchase an individual policy. If you’d like a free quote on an individual disability policy, call BBG at (217) 356-1978 or email me at jab@barhambenefit.com.

If you are an employer and would like a quote for a group policy for your employees, you can do so through the Barham Benefit Group website. Whether your company is large or small, BBG will work with you to create a disability plan that meets the needs of your company and its employees--at a price you can afford.

Save Money on Small Business Health Insurance

Small businesses face many challenges in today’s economy, including the cost of providing employee health insurance. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (see page 6 of this report), businesses have faced a 119% increase over the past decade in the cost of providing health insurance to their employees.

Yet to grow and prosper, small businesses have to recruit and retain talented and dedicated employees--which of course requires offering the right benefits package, including the all-important health package.

Here are some tips that could reduce small business health insurance costs and help companies attract and retain good employees.

1. Keep employees healthy. Wellness programs can be very affordable and offer a great return on investment by keeping your employees healthier and more productive.

2. Use HSAs, which are tax-exempt for employees and help businesses reduce health insurance costs. A health savings account (HSA) combines a high-deductible health insurance plan with a tax-free savings account for employees. HSA accounts may be funded by the employee, employer, or both. Participants in an HSA use the money to pay for medical expenses.

3. Reduce coverage and/or increase employee contributions. The downside of this strategy is that it will be unpopular with employees, but there are ways to mitigate the impact. Some companies, for example, retain medical coverage but drop dental and vision coverage and set up flexible spending accounts (FSAs) that allow employees to set aside pre-tax dollars to pay for out-of-pocket healthcare expenses. Employers can contribute to employee FSAs, which is often more affordable than paying for comprehensive coverage and is perceived positively by workers.

4. Most important--Shop around. Barham Benefit Group offers a wide range of group health plans. We can create a plan that best suits the needs of your company and employees. As an independent agency, BBG works with a large number of insurance carriers and can help you build a plan that offers your employees the benefits they need.

FSAs Under Fire

One of the changes under the proposed health care reforms is to reduce the amount of money that workers can contribute to a flexible spending account (FSA). Currently, with an FSA, an employee can deposit a certain amount of money each year--the amount depends on whether the coverage is individual or family--out of pre-tax dollars and use that money throughout the year to pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as deductibles, co-pays, OTC medications, and other costs not covered by health insurance.

It's been proposed to lower the amount of money that workers can contribute to their FSAs. What's the big deal? Well, if FSA contributions are capped at a lower rate, then people will will not be able to set aside as many pre-tax dollars for medical expenses, which means their taxable income will be higher. Right now, FSAs help American workers save up to 25% on payroll taxes on every medical expense, but the proposed caps will reduce that tax savings.

Save My Flex Plan provides a great deal of information about how this change will affect the hundreds of thousands of workers who contribute to FSAs. I encourage you to read more about this issue and write to your Congressional representatives to ask them to oppose these FSA caps.

Welcome to the BBG Blog

Welcome to my blog. I'm James Barham, a long-time resident of Champaign County, Illinois, and owner of Barham Benefit Group (which I'll often refer to as "BBG" because it's quicker). Barham Benefit Group (based in Champaign, IL) is an independent employee benefits consulting firm that has been helping local businesses and organizations since 1997. In 2006, Champaign native John Katsinas came on board at BBG as an associate.

Barham Benefit Group's company website (www.barhambenefit.com) has more information about the services we offer, and I hope you'll visit the site if you want more information.

My goal with this blog is to provide timely news and announcements, mainly about employee benefit planning and related issues, but also about issues of interest to residents of Champaign-Urbana and surrounding communities. Ours is a vibrant community, and I take pride in the many activities, community groups, and events available to us all. I want to share that with you.

So, check back often. I'm hoping to publish updates at least once a week. The Upcoming Events list in the sidebar at the right will be updated regularly. If you have an event you'd like me to list, please send me an email.

Stay tuned for news about our monthly drawing! You can win a $25 gift certificate to a local business.

And feel free to add your comments!