To keep costs in check, employers are tackling clinical conditions out front and making sure that chronic conditions are managed appropriately. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Employers are figuring on health care costs continuing to escalate, according to the 23rd annual Best Practices in Health Care Employer Survey by Willis Towers Watson.

This year costs increased 5.3 percent and were anticipated to rise by 5.5 percent next year, although employers made plan changes that held both rates down to 4.7 percent and 5 percent, respectively. This is the 13th year in a row, says the report, that employers say they've cut plan value to rein in premiums and total costs. Fortunately for workers, 94 percent of employers are very confident that their organization will continue to sponsor health care benefits in the next five years.

Still, that doesn't mean they aren't looking for more and better ways to hold down the costs. And to do so, as well as to improve workplace performance, they're now focusing on clinical conditions (85 percent) and investing in employee well-being (82 percent), expecting to devote serious attention to both over the next three years.