EBRI Study on Self-Insured Employer Sponsored Health Plans

As we all know, 2013 is shaping up to be an important year for employers, as we all prepare for major Affordable Care Act-related programs and mandates to take effect on January 1, 2014. Much research and analysis is currently going on regarding the future of employer-sponsored coverage in this new era. In addition to this recent report analyzing the likelihood of employers continuing to offer coverage in 2014, and how that coverage might change, Gary Rost of the Savannah Business Group on Health points us to this study from the Employee Benefits Research Institute focused exclusively on self-insured employers.

As the report indicates, the percentage of workers in private-sector self-insured health plans has been increasing. In 2011, 58.5 percent of workers with health coverage were in self-insured plans, up from 40.9 percent in 1998. Large employers (with 1,000 or more workers) have driven the upward trend in overall self-insurance. The percentage of workers in self-insured plans in firms with fewer than 50 employees has been close to 12 percent in most years examined.

These trends may continue increasing, even as we approach full ACA implementation. Moving toward a self-insured plan has many potential benefits for an employer, and we continue to monitor the marketplace for self-insured employers so we can provide support and assistance to coalitions that are seeing an increase in self-insured arrangements.