As the benefits industry looks ahead to the coming year, thebiggest question is – yet again – what’s in store for theAffordable Care Act?

With the individual mandate repealed through the Tax Cuts andJobs Act, effective 2019, the benefits industry could go in twodifferent directions. Is the ACA here to stay, or are otherregulatory rollbacks right around the corner?

Though health care was a major conversation throughout 2017,arguably, there was little appetite to dramatically change theemployer segment, which insures more than half of the U.S.population. Most of the political focus was, and remains, on thelaw’s provisions affecting individuals.

From this, we can predict that while health care has lately beenan “anything-can-happen” environment, it’s safe to assume therewill be little in the way of change for employers in2018.

This is not a bad thing for brokers. In fact, despite itschallenges, the ACA has created some big opportunities for thisindustry, especially for brokers working with small and mid-sizedemployers.

The opportunity to go strategic

The ACA has allowed brokers to differentiate themselves on theirstrategic capabilities. While brokers were certainly executing forsmall groups prior to the ACA, it was arguably a simpler time. Thiscreated a status quo in benefits that still affects our clientstoday.

Here’s an example to illustrate what I mean. Here in Tennessee,employers with five or more employees are required to have workers’compensation insurance. As you can expect, the process for brokersinsuring these small groups of five, six, even 10 employees isfairly standardized. There just aren’t that many differences in thepremiums or plan designs.

This is how it used to be for brokers providing small grouphealth insurance. A basic health plan for 10 employees was bound tofollow the same script.

Now, there is so much more to think about. The ever-changingregulatory environment means that the right strategy for aparticular group can change year after year. It takes a fast-movingbroker to keep up, but this is an exciting time to help employersfind options that work for their employees.

At the agency that BerniePortal came out of, there is anemployer who used to offer coverage to her small group, laterdropped it because of big premium increases, and is now interestedin revisiting group coverage for her employees. She has plenty ofquestions about her options, and there are multiple strategiesavailable for her to find the best plan design for herteam.

This is where today’s brokers can make the biggest difference intheir clients’ organizations. With the rise of self-insurance forsmall groups and reference-based pricing, brokers can also helplead the industry toward a more cost-effective, rationalframework.

The ACA has been a painful transition, but as long as employercoverage remains the bedrock of U.S. health insurance, it isn’tlikely to see too many more dramatic changes in the coming years.This creates a clear opportunity for brokers to stand out from thecompetition by staying ahead of the curve and developing modern,individualized strategies for each of their clients.