HEALTH AND WELFARE BENEFITS

Since 1999, average health insurance premiums for family coverage have increased 131%.¹

VCG can help your organization protect its bottom line from the increasing expense of employee benefits. We design competitive health and welfare packages that rein in costs while delivering the benefits that your employees value most.

We have expertise in the full range of health and welfare plans – medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, disease management, consumer-driven health plans, health reimbursement accounts, flexible spending accounts, disability, life insurance, flexible benefits, and ancillary benefits. Our consulting services include:

• Benefits Strategy
  Working with your leadership team to define the health and welfare benefits strategy
  
  
• Plan Competitiveness
  Conducting opinion surveys to gain insight into employee and management perceptions of benefits, benchmarking plans against peer companies, and analyzing plans relative to industry trends
  
  
• Plan Design
  Recommending plan alternatives, which are both cost- and tax-effective and are aligned with your strategy, marketplace trends, and competitor practices
  
  
• Pricing and Cost-Sharing Alternatives
  Evaluating the costs of benefit plan alternatives and developing short- and long-term
  cost-sharing strategies based on financial and competitiveness objectives
  
  
• Carrier Negotiations
  Negotiating with carriers to get the most competitive price for the services and benefits offered
  
  
• Funding Strategies
  Assessing funding options – self-insured, fully insured, minimum premium, VEBA trust – and recommending the best approach for your business
  
  
• Vendor Evaluation and Selection
  Overseeing all aspects of the carrier selection process, including development and distribution of Requests for Proposals, analysis of proposals, and presentation of recommendations
  
  
• Vendor Management
  Managing vendor relationships to ensure you get the level of service and performance you expect
  
  
• Annual Enrollment Support
  Creating open enrollment materials, training the HR staff on benefit plans, conducting employee benefit information meetings, coordinating benefit fairs, and providing administrative assistance during the open enrollment process
  
  
• Regulatory Compliance
  Ensuring employee benefit plans comply with applicable law on an ongoing basis, preparing the Form 5500 Series to satisfy ERISA and Internal Revenue Code reporting requirements, preparing the Form 990 Series to satisfy non-profit reporting requirements of the Internal Revenue Code, and performing compliance audits for plans
  
  
• Financial Measurement and Monitoring
  Monitoring plan financials, reconciling with the budget, and identifying factors driving variances

To learn more about our services, contact Leslie Schneider at lschneider@VCGConsultants.com or 770.863.3617.

¹Kaiser/HRET Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits, 1999-2009.