Dipping Into the CDH PR Well Again
Employers like consumer directed healthcare plans because they can save money, but employees may not be so in love with them according to a recent Watson/National Business Group on Health survey.
So not surprisingly adoption rates are low and will remain so until the tools and education efforts become pervasively available to consumers. Not to mention a track record of success showing these CDH plans provide good care and value.
For PR practitioners with vendors who offer CDH tool, I recommend using this survey to generate conversation with media and interest in the topic of CDHP adoption. Illustrate how your tool or solution helps consumers navigate the complex world of CDH, be it from a financial, educational, or comparative perspective. Reporters particularly like hearing the real consumer perspective, so try to deliver real consumer references of your product.
According to the survey, by 2009, nearly 55% of U.S. corporations plan on offering a consumer-directed health plan. The findings also show that 47% of employers currently offer a CDHP, an increase from 39% in 2007 and 33% in 2006.
Companies with at least half of their workforce enrolled in a CDHP had a two-year median cost trend of 3.6%, almost half that of employers without a CDHP. Companies with a CDHP witnessed a two-year cost increase of 5.5% versus 7% for companies without a CDHP.
Only 15% of employees at organizations that offer CDHPs are enrolled in the plans this year, up from 8% in 2006 and 10% in 2007. Yet only 6% of employers report 100% enrollment in a CDHP, which is expected to rise to 9% in 2009.
Today, 27% of companies offer CDHPs with a health savings account (HSA), while 24% offer a health reimbursement account (HRA). Notably, employers are three times more likely to add an HSA (9%) than an HRA (3%) in 2009.
Posted by Shawn Whalen on April 28, 2008 at 12:43 PM
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