Evolving legislation continues to steer the U.S. health careindustry, leaving some businesses struggling to stay afloat. Twofactors, the Cadillac tax and private exchanges, are making aparticular splash, providing brokers with a pivotal part to play asbenefits navigators to help employers weather the shifting waves ofchange.

Keep clients on board the benefits boat

An annual excise tax on high-cost employer-sponsored healthinsurance known as the Cadillac tax has been top of mind foremployers, who are unsure of how it will affect their businesses.As it stands, it will impose a 40 percenttax on the portion of a health care plan that exceeds thethreshold of $10,200 a year for individuals or $27,500 forfamilies. Though it won’t begin until 2020, andregulations may still change, many want to brace themselves for thetax’s potential impact — or avoid it altogether.

One major concern is whether the tax could lead to the end ofpretax benefits like HSAs or FSAs, because these types of benefitsare included in the overall tax calculation. Yet, if the tax isenacted as planned, removing pretax plans outright may not benecessary, since they won’t lead to a penalty if the tax isn’ttriggered by exceeding the threshold. In fact, accordingto the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average premiums in 2015were $6,251 for individual coverage and $17,545 for familycoverage, which are well below the threshold for the Cadillac tax.Since the regulations may change and the results are still unknown,staying the course, while also staying informed, will be importantfor brokers and their clients in the years ahead.

Which waves give businesses a boost?

Private exchanges — online marketplaces where people andbusinesses can shop for, compare and buy health insurance — existedprior to the Affordable Care Act, but they’ve received moreattention in the years since the law has taken effect. According tothe Aflac Healthcare 2025 survey, 86 percent of employees said theywere happy with the decisions they made regarding health carecoverage when they used a public or private exchange,and 16 percentof employers project that they’ll move their employee healthinsurance benefits to a private exchange in 2016 — up from 6 percent in 2014 and2015.

By combining online enrollment and personalization, privateexchanges allow health insurance consumers to research and choosebenefits based on their unique situations, with support tools tohelp them make better benefits decisions.

With a variety of options to compare and choose from, combinedwith increased engagement opportunities in the benefitsdecision-making process, it is no wonder private exchanges havegrown in popularity. Even with the consumer independence thattypically accompanies moving benefits to a private exchange,brokers will still play a vital role in the enrollment andeducation process. Online enrollment coupled with personalconsultation can help ensure that employees are selecting the rightbenefits to suit their individual needs, opening an opportunity forbrokers to further position themselves as advisers.

Helping employers sail into calmer seas

The evolution of health care may create some turbulent waters.However, by balancing a benefits strategy that includes personalguidance, information on changing health care legislation andresources to empower employees’ benefits decisions, brokers canhelp businesses maneuver through the waves of change and into thefuture’s bright, not-so-distant horizon.