Since 2004, HR Policy Association has worked to address the
retiree health care benefit needs of large employers. The
Retiree Health Access® Coalition (RHA®) is led by Larry E.
Steward, Vice President, Human Resources, DTE Energy.
Through the Retiree Health Access Coalition, HR Policy members
have been provided:
-
A means of offering retirees access to a marketplace
where they may find equivalent or better coverage at
a lower price point;
-
A vehicle to cap or mitigate FAS 106 expenses;
-
A tax-advantaged way to fund post-retirement benefit
obligations; and
-
An opportunity to transfer the responsibility for
administering retiree benefits from the employer to a
Private Exchange which offers the same or better
features and customer services than group retiree
plans offer.
With the input and support of our Coalition, we built our
Retiree Health Access Exchange which includes the following
features:
-
Access to guaranteed issue, comprehensive coverage for
all retirees, pre as well as post 65 and dependents;
-
A seamless transition from traditional group plans to
fully insured coverage options, both group and individual
plan choices, at a pace that is comfortable for the
employer with all insurance risk borne by participating
carriers;
-
No minimum employer contributions or enrollment
requirements;
-
Funding alternatives for employers who do want to offer
a defined contribution; and
-
Comprehensive administrative services with costs included
in premiums, including billing, enrollment, retiree
communication and decision support and reimbursement
account administration.
The group-based solutions are ERISA plans, offering a unique
underwriting pooling of multiple employers' claims experience
enabling relatively stable premiums. Over the past five years,
annual premium increases for the group risk pool have averaged
just 3.4% per year. All group coverage options, both pre and
post 65 are exclusively underwritten by Aetna through an
agreement with the Health Care Policy Roundtable.
The individual plan options are from an array of competing
carriers offering individual post-65 policies based on the
retiree's geographic location. Retirees can shop and compare
the individual marketplace and choose a plan that best meets
their needs.
The Roundtable is currently setting up companies interested in
pre-65 individual plans for launch on January 1, 2014, as the
marketplace prepares for the implementation of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act.
If you would like additional information, please contact the
Health Care Policy Roundtable at (202) 408-9740, or by email at
info@healthcarert.com.