Debbie Perlman Blog

Portland, Ore. (September 26, 2019) —The National Psoriasis Foundation, NPF, applauds Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Senator Doug Jones (D-AL), Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Senator Margaret Hassan (D-NH), Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), and Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) for introducing the Safe Step Act. This legislation amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to require a group health plan (or health insurance coverage offered in connection with such a plan) to provide a robust exception process for step therapy protocols. Step therapy is a tool used by health insurance providers to control spending on patient’s medications. While step therapy can be effective in containing the costs of prescription drugs, in some circumstances, it can have a negative impact on patients including delayed access to the most effective treatment, severe side effects, and potentially irreversible disease progression. Currently, when a health care provider prescribes a t...

Anthem’s Trends in Health Benefits 2018 report found that consumer-driven health plans (CDHPs) are gaining popularity among both employers and employees. But what is a consumer-driven health plan, really, and is it a good option for your business? The Benefits of CDHPs A consumer-driven health plan is a high-deductible health insurance plan that’s used in conjunction with a tax-advantaged savings account — either a health savings account (HSA), a flexible spending account (FSA) or a health reimbursement account (HRA). Enrollment in high-deductible health plans with associated savings accounts has increased by 50 percent since 2013. And the average employee-only premium for a CDHP is roughly $6,459 — nearly 10 percent lower than the average premium for a traditional preferred provider organization (PPO) plan. This makes CDHPs a more cost-effective way to offer health insurance, a crucial factor in attracting and retaining top employees. At the same time, these p...

The continued success of value-based care depends on providers having the tools they need to collect and analyze data. In the past, those tools haven’t always been up to the task. But that’s changing — and just in time. Despite the momentum value-based care has seen, one recent HealthEdge survey found that many health insurance executives doubt these programs will grow much over the next two years — and 40 percent cited health care technology challenges as one of the primary reasons why. Perhaps the biggest obstacle value-based care faces has to do with collecting and crunching data. Providers work most effectively when they’re able to measure changes to patients’ health and identify clues that allow them to prevent — rather than just treat — health concerns. But that’s only achievable when physicians can collect and analyze relevant data, which many can’t. Fortunately, payers, providers, vendors, academics and others have been working on ways to overcome these...

Offering your workforce health insurance for the first time is an exciting milestone. It’s a sign that your business is taking its next steps to something even bigger and better. Your employees will also appreciate the perk. Employees rate health insurance as the most valuable workplace benefit, a critical factor in their decision to either stay at a job or seek a new employer. As you begin offering health benefits, you want the process to be as smooth as possible, for you and your employees alike — especially when open enrollment (OE) enters the mix. Here’s how to make sure your employees have the information they need to make smart choices about their health insurance. Why Is an Open Enrollment Plan Essential? Even though your employees want health insurance benefits, they may not understand their plan itself. A health insurance literacy survey of 2,000 Americans with health insurance found that most of them overestimated their health insurance know-how. Despite w...

A recent insurance industry survey found that almost half of all Americans don’t have life insurance coverage 1 . The survey also found that Americans’ changing needs in different stages of life can influence their perception of the importance of life insurance in their overall financial wellness. The survey found that 67 percent of Americans believe that having life insurance is important to achieving financial wellbeing, but just 53 percent of Americans have life insurance coverage. Where does this disparity come from? It could be from different stages of life, with different pressures and expenses. What about being prepared for emergencies – how important is that to most people? According to the research, emergency savings is only important to 77% of 18-24 years old, but is important to 93% of people 55 and older. And less than half of those 18-24 year olds perceive life insurance as important to their financial wellness, but over three-quarters of 45-54 year ol...

It’s no coincidence that one of the most special times in a person’s life also happens to be among the most expensive. Having a baby in a hospital setting costs a family an average of $3,035 — and that’s just for a delivery that’s “natural” in nearly every sense of the word (read: no epidural). The dollar signs tick up from there, amounting to medical bills that can keep coming long after mom returns from maternity leave. But chances are none of this is a shock to you or your employees. The thing about babies, at least biological ones, is that nature gives most new parents roughly nine months to prepare. And many new moms or dads know to expect medical expenses ahead of time. Still, there are some costs that even the most astute planners may not anticipate. Life can throw wrenches in every part of a person’s birth plan, and your employees may get hit for more than they bargained for when welcoming that new bundle of joy — which can seriously affect their engagem...