Employment Resources

Many employers are frustrated because they are under the mistaken impression that they are too small to offer quality health benefits for their employees. Generally, however, this is not the case: Many states require insurance companies to provide group underwriting for companies with as few as two employees, including the owner.

Specific rules and qualifications vary by state. But as a general rule, small businesses with at least two to four full-time employees usually qualify for guaranteed-issue Group Health insurance benefits, provided they offer these benefits to all qualified employees, and that a minimum percentage of employees actually sign up for the plan.

This is important, because it helps put even very small businesses with just a few employees on a more level playing field with larger corporations and government employers, when it comes to attracting and retaining talent in the marketplace.

It also means it is quite possible for even small businesses to provide much needed health benefits even for those employees who have medical problems, or who have families with medical issues. Coverage of Pre-existing Conditions. Under the Health Insurance Protection and Portability Act, federal law restricts the ability of insurance companies to exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions. Specifically, they may impose a “look-back” period of no more than six months, and exclude pre-existing medical conditions for not longer than 12 months. Individual states may shorten these periods, based on their own needs.

Coverage of Pre-existing Conditions. Under the Health Insurance Protection and Portability Act, federal law restricts the ability of insurance companies to exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions. Specifically, they may impose a “look-back” period of no more than six months, and exclude pre-existing medical conditions for not longer than 12 months. Individual states may shorten these periods, based on their own needs.

However, as long as you or your employees maintain coverage, and do not have a lapse in coverage of more than 63 days, insurance companies cannot exclude coverage of any pre-existing condition normally included under the plan. To avoid any problems, ensure you have no break in coverage, whether that coverage comes from an individual plan, a workplace sponsored plan, or from COBRA continuation coverage. As long as the insured maintains coverage, and has no break in coverage lasting more than 63 days, the law limits insurers’ ability to discriminate on the basis of medical history.

If you do have a break in coverage, though, all bets are off.

Tax Credit. Under the new Affordable Care Act, Congress is providing a tax incentive to encourage small employers to provide Health insurance benefits for their workers. The tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction of the business’s income tax liabilities, and is therefore far more lucrative than a tax deduction, which only offsets 35 cents on the dollar, at most.

Not all businesses qualify for the tax credit. The qualification criteria are as follows:

• You must employ fewer than 25 workers or full-time equivalents.
• Your average worker must not make more than $50,000 per year from working for you (their outside earnings don’t count against you).
• You must pay at least 50% of your workers premiums – but not necessarily premiums to cover their dependents.

The credit is calculated on a sliding scale: The lower your workers’ pay and the fewer of them you hire, the greater your tax credit under the Affordable Care Act.

Employers can select a variety of Health insurance plans to offer employees in a small group. Point of service plans tend to offer the richest benefits and the widest choice of providers, but may have relatively high premiums.

To save money, employers may select a health maintenance organization or preferred provider organization, both of which typically restrict non-emergency providers to a pre-approved list in exchange for discounts, which they pass on to customers in the form of lower premiums.

Employers can also choose to offer high-deductible health plans and health savings account combinations, or HDHP/HSAs, which have proven effective in reducing health care premiums for many employers compared with traditional medical plans. However, workers enrolled in these plans bear a greater burden in assuming risk, in the form of higher premiums.

Call us today. Health insurance plans are extremely situational-dependent. Different businesses have different needs, and premiums can be set very differently depending on your location and your employee census. The best course of action is to contact us today for a no-obligation consultation and detailed quote. From there, our agents will work with your staff to ensure an efficient enrollment process.

Since the medical costs for diabetes reach into the billions each year, taking a chunk out of the cumulative cost of this disease would be beneficial in many ways. As most people know, the goal of disease management programs is to reduce the costs incurred by diabetes. To do this, these programs attempt to teach patients to control the disease. They learn the importance of monitoring cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose levels. Individuals with diabetes face similar challenges, treatment choices and the possibility of serious complications. This means that anyone who has diabetes can benefit from the offerings of a disease management program.

However, this is an issue where logic and science are not always in harmony. Many studies have shown that the majority of people with diabetes complications are less educated. Since they lack education, these individuals are more likely to hop from one treatment to another, which is a practice that may create even worse problems. One research study showed that patients who were less educated had two to three times as many incidences of coronary artery disease and end-stage renal disease. The researchers’ conclusion showed that less educated patients with lower socioeconomic status also had poor health management skills for themselves.

Education also plays an important role in the possibility of dying from complications. Research shows that individuals who did not finish high school have a death rate that is twice as high as the rate of death for diabetic patients with college degrees. It is also interesting to note that this factor remains true regardless of race, gender, age, obesity and other relevant factors.

For individuals who need it most, a disease management program will make a significant impact. This means that those who have the highest risk for complications will likely be the most impacted. These programs also have the highest ROI for groups with the largest amount of high-risk members. However, such programs have a lower return for groups filled with people who have college degrees.

Unfortunately, these statistics are not restricted to diabetes. In general, individuals who have a lower income, less education and a lower socioeconomic status face more health challenges. People who have higher education and earn a better income are more likely to get help, follow a treatment plan and learn to live with various diseases. To learn more about disease management and what it is about, discuss the options with one of our friendly agents.

Employers are making stronger efforts to educate their employees about health care and manage costs. However, they’ve also realized that encouragement alone is not enough to produce employees who are better health care consumers. In order to make their employees better health care consumers, employers must equip them with the incentive and tools to become what they need to be. For many companies, the answer to their problems has many facets. Health care consumerism requires education and tools for adequate exercising, eating a balanced diet, monitoring health numbers, avoiding smoking and taking the initiative to make changes when health numbers aren’t optimal. In addition to this, health consumerism involves employees being aware of the costs of health care and taking measures to lower those costs. Plan designing, communication and incentives are all important parts of the equation. There are several important issues to consider with this idea.

Helping Employees Care about Their Health. Employers are realizing that simply offering options to employees isn’t enough. They know that employees must receive incentives for doing something difficult that ultimately benefits the employer. In addition to providing employees with the necessary tools to become better healthcare consumers, employers must also give them a reason to use those tools. For example, many pharmacies have varying prices among brand-name drugs and generic equivalents. Educating employees about this difference is important. If they realize all their HSA fund allowance will be used to pay for the expensive name-brand drug, they’ll be more driven to shop smart and use the generic equivalent.

Implementing Consumer-Directed Plans. Many companies that are designing plans are using consumer-directed health plans with health reimbursement arrangements or health savings accounts. To learn how these plans work, discuss the details with us. Some employers are now offering more options for their employees. However, reaching optimal health and maintaining it is the overall goal. Many companies are realizing the importance of trying to run an active health plan to encourage a healthy lifestyle instead of just offering a sick plan to deal with illnesses.

Offering Attractive Incentives. The efforts employers have made to help their employees save for retirement with contribution plans are similar to their efforts to move employees toward better health care consumerism. The main similarity is that both plans involve a greater amount of responsibility being placed on employees. While they face more responsibilities, their employers use incentives to offer rewards for desired behavior. Just as employers use matching contributions to retirement plans to encourage participation, many are now offering contributions toward HSAs and HRAs to encourage participation and better health care consumerism.

Keeping on Track. In order to keep health care consumerism alive, employers must keep track of their efforts. This allows them to determine whether employees are changing their behaviors or not. Some companies have developed special systems for tracking progress. One company developed a helpful dashboard of metrics, which is reviewed monthly for success. It shows the progress of employees as they work toward earning incentives. It also shows interaction rates with health plan representatives through the company’s work sites. There are several ways to implement these valuable changes. To learn more, discuss the possible options with one of our agents.

Generation Y is filling up the workplace and the world. Employers who want to gather, engage and keep these workers must know their preferences and styles of communication. This is especially true in the aspect of workplace benefits. Employers’ ability to attract and keep these younger employees is becoming an important part of ensuring long-term success in business. The Baby Boomers are starting to retire in larger numbers and will continue to do so in the future. Since the younger generation has different needs, preferences and expectations, companies must approach benefit package designs in a different way. If employers resist these necessary changes, they could face losing employees and their competitive edge. This means they’ll be left behind in the business world, which is progressing faster each year. There are several things employers and HR managers need to consider about adapting to the new generation of workers.

Generation Y members are usually less financially stable. In comparison with older generations, the younger generation appears to be much more irresponsible with money and financial obligations. Almost half of the individuals in the younger generation pay bills late, have significant credit card debt and are not setting away money for financial emergencies. This generation also switches jobs frequently.

Generation Y prefers personal communication. While previous generations favored the traditional way of looking for benefits information in the workplace, the younger generation prefers personal communication. Although most people think this generation is constantly wired, they tend not to look online for resources. They feel that all resources and information should be brought to them. However, older workers are more likely to look for blogs, forums and other valuable sources of online information independently. The younger generation members are also more likely to ask family members or friends for such information.

Generation Y values strong benefits but they’re usually under-insured. Although most of the individuals in this generation think that benefits are the most important aspect of a job, they often have inadequate insurance. However, they’re the group of workers who are least likely to take advantage of insurance in the workplace. This includes Disability, Life, Accident insurance and major medical plans.

Opportunities for Benefits Communication

In the research for a clearer opportunity for employers to engage Generation Y workers, the research of benefits communication appeared. Workers in this generation usually rate employers unfavorably for the effectiveness of benefits they offer. There are several steps employers can take to boost the effectiveness of communication between themselves and these younger workers. The following are a few valuable suggestions:

• Implement one-on-one counseling.
• Employ several forms of communication.
• Make content interactive and engaging.
• Use the proper technology for the message.

As benefits decisions continue to shift toward employees, the workers of Generation Y will become more enthusiastic toward the information and products required to manage personal financial security. Employers have the opportunity to build a better ROI by properly evaluating the benefits they offer. They must also evaluate the methods of communication used to appeal to individuals who are part of Generation Y. By doing this, employers will enjoy a more engaged, productive and loyal workforce.

The month of October usually marks the beginning of open enrollment for American workers who want benefits. This is the time of year when employees are able to join, change or drop their benefits. Recent research shows that 80% of workers feel that the workplace is the key source for savings products and personal insurance. American workers are enrolling in benefit plans for life insurance, long-term care insurance and disability coverage. The amount of workers signing up for life insurance is well over 75%. However, the number signing up for disability coverage isn’t much higher than 60%. The amount of workers signing up for Long-Term Care insurance is less than 25%.

One of the most important things people considering benefits should do is take the necessary time to do research and consider their options. These steps are necessary in order to make informed decisions. Workers who are considering enrolling in plans should speak to a qualified agent to discuss their options and which ones are best. It’s also important to talk to partners and family members about long-term financial needs prior to deciding on benefits. There are several online tools that are valuable for determining individual needs. Many consumers are balancing various priorities and expenses in the tough economy. However, investing time in considering benefits is a vital step in the right direction. Taking control of financial security in the future is an important part of life that every working person should take seriously. Although nearly every person is aware of the importance of selecting benefits, less than 75% of Americans proceed as far as enrollment.

It’s not surprising that employees spend large amounts of time focusing on health care benefits prior to enrolling. Since the cost of health care is constantly rising, this is an important factor. Although it is an important consideration, it’s also crucial for employees to pay attention to securing enough coverage to protect themselves from the impact of long-term care or disability in the future. Research shows that nearly 30% of employees entering the workforce today will be disabled before reaching retirement age. Employers are a vital part of helping employees understand their benefit options. They are also needed to help determine which products are best for each individual. Employers must take all necessary steps to ensure that their employees are properly informed before making such vital decisions.

Research shows that several communication methods are used for conveying choices to employees. Workplace emails take the lead as the top choice. Group meetings during work hours and regular mail are also popular choices of communication. These three mediums are also the most preferred among American employees in the workforce. It’s important for employers to evaluate their individual workplaces to determine which communication methods are best for their employees. It’s best to choose the best one in order to avoid overloading employees with information. If this happens, they’re less likely to realize the value of what they’re being offered.

A lot of U.S. employees have noticed that their employers have started shifting the costs of health plans toward them. And, let’s face it, as the increases in health plan premiums continue to outpace inflation, employers will continue to make such shifts.

Employees will be facing some difficult choices. One such choice would be between paying higher monthly premiums for a plan featuring lower out-of-pocket costs and deductibles -or- paying a lower monthly premium for a plan featuring higher out-of-pocket costs and deductibles. Decisions like this bring the age-old cost, quality debate to the forefront. Let’s look at some facts:

• Even in the same market and network, the cost and quality of health care can vary greatly from provider to provider.
• Most employees are baffled by the complexities involved with health care and insurance pricing. The majority of providers fail to see the importance of providing patients with clear and concise pricing information. From in-network and out-of- network, billed charges, customary and reasonable charges, contracted pricing and global pricing, and so forth, the technical language and multiple ways that users are charged make it extremely difficult for employees to understand and compare costs from one provider/facility to another.
• An employee won’t care what services cost if they aren’t the one paying for the services.

In theory, the success of consumer-directed health plans greatly depends on the employer’s ability to get their employees to think like buyers. The reasoning being that employees paying for some portion of the services will look toward high quality, low cost provider options and lower both their own health care costs and those of their employer.

However, the above theory rarely reflects reality. Most consumerism experts say that shopping for health care isn’t akin to shopping for a vehicle or pair of shoes. Most people wouldn’t hesitate to buy the most expensive vehicle when someone else is paying the bill. After all, the most expensive vehicle must be the best, right? The problem with applying the same theory to health care and trying to create a smart consumer through increasing their out-of-pocket costs is that many consumers, no matter how frugal or involved, can’t get the comparative quality and cost data needed to make an informed decision. The same can’t be said of purchasing a car.

You can help your employees benefit from quality and cost data with these steps:

• Alert local medical facilities/physicians that their plan favors transparent pricing and high quality, low cost care services.
• Help them know their choices and what each costs. Health care plans should be designed so that it’s financially encouraging to choose the medical facilities, hospitals, and doctors providing contracted pricing data.
• Have ongoing monthly education about network choices and how these choices impact what they and everyone else spends on health care.

Since Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) were first authorized in January of 2004 as a tax-advantaged portal for medical savings, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), which is a trade association representing the health insurance industry, has conducted an annual survey of the HSA market. According the 2011 AHIP survey, HSA plan enrollment in the United States has almost doubled over the last three years, going from 6.1 million participants in 2008 to 11.4 million participants in 2011. From 2010 to 2011, the number of Americans covered by HSAs linked to high-deductible plans (HDHPs) increased by 14%.

Other key findings from the AHIP survey are:

• Large-group coverage was the fastest growing market for HSA plans between 2010 and 2011, with a growth of 26%.
• Individual market coverage was the second fastest growing market for HSA plans, with a growth of 15%.
• More than 6.3 million individuals were enrolled in HSA plans in the large-group market.
• Around 2.8 million individuals were enrolled in HSA plans in the small-group market.
• Approximately 2.4 million individuals were enrolled in HSA plans in the individual market.

The Impact Of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act On HSAs

As it relates to HSA plans, AHIP has noted that some of the provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) could create some potential unintended consequences that might disrupt, if not limit, the availability of HSA plan coverage. Three of the main problems noted by AHIP include:

1. Medical loss ratio regulation. This requires an insurer to spend 80% or more of a consumer’s premiums on direct, non-administrative patient care and improvements to such care’s quality. AHIP asserts that medical loss ratio regulations will be especially problematic for HSA-eligible HDHPs. Participating in a qualified HDHP is a requirement to participate in an HSA. HDHPs provide individuals with a low-premium, high-deductible alternative to traditional health plans. These plans might have lower benefit costs, but they certainly aren’t always cheaper to administer from a per-enrollee standpoint. As a result, they may naturally have lower medical loss ratios.

2. Over-the-counter (OTC) medication restrictions. After 2011, funds from HSAs can’t be used to purchase OTC medications unless the individual has a prescription in hand. By limiting consumer access to many common OTC drugs, such as those used for allergies and colds, consumers will be left in default to use more expensive prescription drugs.

3. Minimum actuarial value requirement. Each level of insurance coverage (platinum, gold, silver, and bronze) sold in either the small or individual market will be required to meet a level-specific minimum actuarial value starting in 2014. The actuarial value is a dollar value based on the average benefits expected to be paid out by a particular plan. Bronze, which is the lowest level, will be required to have at least a 60% actuarial value. Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services is to institute a process that will determine actuarial values. The health care reform law specifically instructs that the HHS Secretary may include annual employer HSA contribution amounts within the actuarial value calculation. Of course, this wording means annual employer HSA contribution amounts may not be calculated. AHIP recognizes that including this in the calculation will help to ensure continued consumer access to affordable, high-quality coverage since inclusion will considerably increase the probability that HSAs will meet the minimum requirements.

In closing, AHIP’s survey clearly reflects that HSA enrollment is steadily growing. Policymakers should recognize that HSA plans are more important than ever when it comes to U.S. consumers having access to affordable, quality coverage.

According to the Centers for Medicaid Services, at $8,086 per person annually, the United States spends more per capita on health care than any other country in the world. However, at least half of the country’s population has one or more chronic diseases, 33% are diabetic or pre-diabetic and 66% are overweight or obese. These statistics came from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lack of exercise, poor nutrition and smoking are three leading contributors to such a high percentage of unhealthy people.

Promoting a Healthy Lifestyle. People are naturally wired to keep doing what they’re already doing. If there is no incentive to change, even if it’s beneficial, they won’t. This also applies to offering passive open enrollment. Employees are more likely to keep their current coverage. VBID is a new insurance design based on value. It also encourages wellness proponents. The main idea is to match patients’ out-of-pocket expenses with heath service values. Different levels of value are recognized in this approach. By making high-value treatments more available and discouraging low-value treatments, this approach works to yield improved health outcomes on all health care expenditure levels. Research shows that barrier reductions improve patient compliance for recommended treatments.

In addition to increasing compliance for treatments, this approach has also been shown to increase compliance in patients who need regular medication. A study performed by the Center for Health Value Innovation and the University of Michigan Center for Value-Based Insurance Design showed that patients with chronic illnesses who required medication were more willing to take it. Their cooperation for preventative services was also better. However, there is still one troubling issue, which is people who have the opportunity and encouragement to comply but don’t. This has left researchers wondering what is missing from the VBID approach that is necessary to make such people more compliant. The solution is to implement the use of loss aversion and productive tension to raise individual involvement for improving healthy behavior.

Raising the Productive Tension Level. The main idea of productive tension is to create a program that gives enough initiative to provide patients with a positive reason to change. In order to be optimal, productive tension needs to have four different components:

• Information – Although it increases knowledge, it doesn’t always encourage action. If it did, the country’s population would be rich, fit and happy. After purchasing $46 billion on diet and self-help books in 2010, Americans still need help.
• Infrastructure – This includes having the right tools, technology and resources to help people. Keep in mind that infrastructure alone doesn’t necessarily initiate action.
• Incentives – Nothing works better for motivation than a reward. Financial rewards are especially enticing. These still may not initiate action in all people. In a Global Survey of Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies, only 48% of employers stated that their incentive programs were minimally effective.
• Imperatives – These are important for accountability and understanding. People need to know what they must accomplish, why they need to do so and what happens if they fail.

Applying the Behavioral Design. One illustrative example of applying the behavior-based design is depicted by Safeway. The supermarket chain’s CEO, Steven Burd, said that 70% of his employees’ health care costs were because of their own behavior. In addition to this, 74% of those cases included four major chronic health conditions. The conditions were cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity. During the following five years, the supermarket chain redesigned its health care infrastructure. Their new focus, after launching the Healthy Measures Initiative, is consumer-based strategies. As a result of the positive changes, Safeway has seen a great increase in voluntary participation among their workers for controlling and preventing these conditions.

Solutions for Creating Tension. There are several different ways to encourage participants to become healthier. The following are a few good examples of beneficial changes:

• Health Requirements – Having employees pass an annual physical and health exam is a great idea for an incentive.
• Company Gym – While providing an outside gym membership may be effective sometimes, having a gym or fitness center in the workplace is even more effective.
• Company Contests – Hosting contests that all employees can participate in is beneficial. Weight loss or health competitions with cash prizes and contribution pools are extremely successful.

The bottom line is that increasing tension to promote a healthy lifestyle change is the best way to make it happen. People are much easier to convince when there are both incentives and rewards.

You might have already noticed or heard of the Health Savings Account (HSA) deduction on your income tax forms. Up to $6,150 (families) or $3,050 (individuals) of your HSA contributions are tax-deductible. This isn’t only a tax advantage; it ultimately means more affordable health coverage for you or your family. So, it might be very beneficial for you to become familiar with HSAs.

HSAs marry high-deductible, lower premium health insurance plans with tax-advantaged savings accounts. Although you’ll pay significantly less in premiums for HSA qualified plans than other more traditional health insurance plans due to the high-deductible aspect, it’s still quality coverage. Even areas like preventive care are included.

The money that you’d have otherwise spent on more expensive coverage options can be deposited into an HSA, and it would then be free to grow from a tax-deferred position. So long as you use your HSA dollars for qualified medical expenses, you’d also be able to make untaxed withdrawals. Areas like your health plan deductible and uncovered dental and vision care are just a few examples of qualified medical expenses. Any leftover funds in the HSA at the end of the year will roll over to the next year. Keep in mind that you, not your bank or insurance company, own the account and its funds. This means that you’re the one deciding when to save and when you need to spend.

You might have heard that the new health care laws recently changed some aspects of HSAs. However, the three-pronged tax advantage remains the same – HSA deposits are still tax-deductible, interest can still grow in a tax-deferred state, and withdrawals for qualified medical expenses aren’t subject to taxation.

In addition to the above, those 65-years-old and up will not suffer a penalty for using HSA dollars for non-medical expenses so long as they pay regular income taxes. For those at least 55-years-old and not yet eligible for Medicare, you’ll have an even greater tax advantage from being able to make an additional $1,000 annual HSA contribution. Also, any HSA owner can make a transfer from their IRA, but this can not exceed the annual contribution limit and is limited to a one-time transfer.

It’s often later in life when medical needs become the greatest and most costly. Most HSA providers will offer several different investment options, such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds, that will help you to build an even greater medical nest egg for your future medical needs.

In summary, it’s all of the combined features and advantages that make HSAs a financially appealing option for many individuals and families. After all, who wouldn’t want to build their savings for current and future medical expenses from a position that’s so tax advantageous?

Many organizations are searching for ways to reduce costs and increase profits when it comes to health care expenses. This is especially true if they’re self-funded expenses. One of the best ways to reduce the amount employees must pay is to utilize options that will lower the need to visit a primary care physician for simple issues. Telemedicine makes it easier for employees to skip spending large amounts of money on office visits for colds, sore throats, flu symptoms or other minor but irritating medical issues. However, telemedicine doesn’t mean ignoring the need to see a primary physician for more serious matters.

If a person needs a simple non-narcotic prescription for a simple diagnosis, a quick phone call to a physician is the easiest solution. One of the biggest advantages of the phone call is that it’s free to both the employer and employee. In addition to both parties saving money on an office visit, unless the employee is sick with a contagious illness, the employer may not need to lose the employee for an hour or more for an out-of-the-workplace doctor visit. Since there are so many advantages to telemedicine, it is gaining a great deal of popularity.

This new technology involves exchanging medical information about one patient with various sites and health care providers through electronic communications. By sharing the information and contributing a group effort, the goal is to improve each patient’s health status. Although many new technologies are expensive when they first surface, telemedicine is an exception. It is relatively inexpensive. However, there are a few challenges that come with it. Regulatory procedures and steps are one of the biggest challenges. For example, a specialist who is in another state may have issues electronically prescribing medicine to a patient in a separate state where licensing restrictions are different.

In addition to the above example, only a few states have requirements in place for insurers to provide coverage for telehealth care. Equipment for telehealth can be installed in small clinics, physicians’ offices, workplaces and hospitals for amounts between $10,000 and $100,000. Although the technology isn’t intended to replace communication with a primary care provider, it is beneficial for obtaining care quickly when it’s otherwise difficult to find. Research shows that about 50% of the population is optimistic about this new form of technology and would be eager to use it. The following benefits are the reasons why telemedicine is growing in popularity:

It is cost efficient. Reducing costs and maintaining affordable rates are two of the best reasons for adopting one of these plans. Shorter hospital stays, less travel time and shared health professional staffing are just a few examples of ways money can be saved.

Employees enjoy better access. Telemedicine is the best way for patients who live in remote areas to receive the care they need quickly. It also allows physicians and other health care professionals to expand their spectrum of care beyond their offices.

It provides a way to meet patients’ demands. The biggest advantages of telemedicine are enjoyed by the patient, the patient’s family and the community. Research over the past several years has shown that patients are consistently satisfied with the time and money saved by using telemedicine.

Employers who want to increase their profitability and help their employees save money should consider adding telemedicine to their overall plan. Companies that wish to provide these services can access them by contracting with a vendor that offers telemedicine services. They can also be accessed through a discount medical plan organization. To learn more about telemedicine, discuss the available options with one of our agents.