Apr 3, 2025 | COVID-19, Family doctors, Mental Health, Primary Care, Telehealth
Five years after the pandemic, MedBen clients have seen a general decline in telehealth visits by plan members to their family doctors, dropping 45% from its peak. Currently, only about five percent of members are still using telehealth. One exception to this trend is...
Sep 17, 2024 | Announcements, Compliance, Department of Labor, Mental Health, Mental health parity, Regulatory
On September 9, 2024, the federal Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released information and a preview of the Department of Labor’s final Mental Health Parity regulations. The Final Rules are scheduled to be published in the Federal Register within the...
Sep 13, 2024 | Cancer, Health care costs, Heart disease, High-cost claims, Mental Health, Rx Costs, Survey
Employers say they expect their health care costs to rise 7.8% next year — the highest estimate in more than 15 years — according to the latest Business Group on Health member survey. Even factoring in cost-reducing plan design changes, respondents project costs to...
Apr 26, 2024 | Caroline Fraker, Compliance, MedBen University, Mental Health, Mental health parity, Regulatory, Roundtables
At the Municipality & Public Employer Roundtable on April 24, MedBen Senior Vice President Caroline Fraker discussed mental health parity and how proposed rules are expected to affect self-funded employers in 2025. “Mental health and substance use disorder...
Mar 29, 2024 | COVID-19, MedBen Analytics, Mental Health, Telehealth
It should comes as no surprise that telehealth visits saw a big upswing in early 2020, as COVID-19 began to spread. As the pandemic subsided, telehealth visits slowly dropped but still retain residual popularity. The graph below shows bimonthly telehealth utilization...
Nov 28, 2023 | Cancer, Cost Savings, Mental Health, Pharmacy, Prescription, Savings, Survey, Transparency
A recent survey of large employers by the Business Group on Health revealed considerations that self-funded plans expect to focus on in the coming year, including: Pharmacy costs. High-priced drugs and overall pharmacy costs are a source of concern for over 90% of...
