The future of commercial health benefits

Demographics

The analyses and findings shared in this report are based on 252 clean, complete responses to the survey from relevant respondents. A clean, complete response is one where the respondent has taken the time to go through the survey and provide thoughtful responses. We screen out any response suspected of selecting the same option for each question or those completed significantly under the anticipated time required to complete the survey.

The survey includes responses from both self-funded and fully insured employers across industries that include consumer products, financial services, healthcare, technology, professional services, media and entertainment and real estate.

Employers were segmented by the number of full-time employees (FTEs) employed by the organization, as follows: 

• Jumbo: >5,000 FTEs
• Large: 1,000 to 5,000 FTEs
• Medium: 200 to 999 FTEs
• Small: <200 FTEs

Respondents included were either the primary decision-maker or played a significant role in employee health benefits decisions at their organization.

Titles of respondents surveyed: C-suite (CEO, CHRO, etc.), president, executive or senior vice president, director.

Methodology

The survey consisted of 35 questions on a range of topics pertaining to employee health benefits themes and objectives, both historically and within the near term. Respondents were also asked to reflect on their experience purchasing from and evaluating specific carriers of employer-sponsored health plans to explore employee health benefits at a micro level.

The target audience was prescreened for relevant experience and involvement in selecting employee health benefits within their organization.

The survey was web based and was fielded over the course of two weeks. Responses were then recorded and segmented to pull insights across employer size, industry and insurance model.

Supporting research

EY-Parthenon conducted outreach phone interviews with five decision-makers from employers of various sizes and industries across the US to further understand the rationale behind employee health benefits decisions and strategies.