Employee-Paid

Although the price of gasoline dominates the headlines, the cost of health care is eroding the earning power of U.S. workers. Panelists addressed that topic in a recent webinar, "A Fresh Look at Reference-Based Pricing to Drive Affordability."

"By the 46th day after his appeal, Hartford had not determined McQuillin's benefits nor extended its review time."

The last few years have seen major changes for many stakeholders in the health care industry. A new report from Optum details how health care leaders have responded to these challenges.

Interestingly, the amount within HSAs isn't correlated to how long the accounts have been in existence, according to the analysis.

"HSAs are a tax advantage for better-off people, masquerading as a health-care efficiency increase that never was very likely and is not occurring now."

There is room for improvement in the methods used by the insurance industry to address the challenges of care and care-related benefits.