News/Blog

With the cost of healthcare rising about 8.5% each year, employers must embrace creative solutions – or face extinction. By introducing risk management solutions, it helps employers not only protect their bottom line, but also anticipate the consequences of cost shifting to employees. Direct Primary Care (DPC) is a new, innovative solution that helps empower…

Pharmaceutical related costs make up a third of all health care costs. Naturally, many employers are now looking for creative solutions to help curb these costs and gain transparency to identify savings. Axion has developed partnerships with companies that can provide a solution for this: Pharmacy Carve Out Programs. A pharmacy carve out program is…

Surgery costs represent the single largest component of United States health care spending at approximately $700 billion, or 31% of the total annual health care spend.  Much of this cost is passed on to self-funded employers who continue to see their health care spend, especially spend related to surgery, skyrocket.   Beginning in 2018, Axion…

Has your strategy for communicating benefits to your employees evolved in the past several years? If the answer is no, you are missing an important aspect of your overall benefits strategy.   Axion is impacting mid-market employers by implementing a market-driven approach to communications. What is this approach?   In the past, benefits communications were…

What is your risk tolerance? Many would argue they are either risk-seeking or risk-averse – you’re either all in or you’re not, 0 or 100% tolerant. When it comes to the traditional models of employer healthcare insurance, funding arrangements are the same: you’re either fully insured or self-funded. When you’re self-funded, you take on more…

Medicare Cost Plus plans result in annual claims savings of around $150,000 – $200,000 per 100 employees for employers.”   Self-insured medical plan groups are becoming very prevalent – however, they are still experiencing increases in per capita medical costs that greatly exceed Consumer Price Index. A Medicare Cost Plus (MCP) plan may be a…

On Dec. 20, 2017, the tax reform bill, called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill is now expected to be signed into law by President Trump shortly. This News Brief provides an overview of the tax reform bill and its potential impact…

While America waits for the Trump administration to deliver the change to healthcare that in part elected him, the reality is that high costs are here, and immediate action is necessary. According to The Kiplinger Letter, 10% of patients currently account for 65% of health costs. While we wait for our political leaders to act…

What is a Financial Wellness Program? Workplace wellness programs first rose to prominence in the late 1980s. The original design of the programs addressed physical and mental well-being for employees through lifestyle and disease management. According to IBIS World, a leader in industry market research, the wellness industry generates nearly $6 billion in revenue. While…

After much anticipation, House Republicans have revealed their alternative to the Affordable Care Act. The new American Health Care Act promises many changes ranging from tax incentives to a halt on Medicaid expansion. Despite meaningful progress, the bill faces challenges. Even among republicans, there is still discord between moderate and hard-right conservatives like Rand Paul,…