Washington Watch  

 

Zenefits. The Wall Street Journal reports, "Human-resources startup Zenefits Inc. is falling short of its aggressive revenue targets and has started to curb expenses, making it the latest highly valued venture-backed company struggling to meet investor expectations." Read the full article here:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/highly-valued-startup-zenefits-runs-into-turbulence-1447375220

UnitedHealth Group May Exit the Exchanges. "The nation's largest health insurer warned Thursday that it may pull out of the Obamacare exchanges after 2016 - forcing more than a half million people to find other coverage - after low enrollment and high usage cost the company millions of dollars. The possible move by UnitedHealth Group raises new questions about the viability of President Obama's signature health law and follows the departure of more than half of the non-profit insurance cooperatives this year. If UnitedHealth drops out, consumers would lose one of the lowest-cost plans available in much of the country, and some wonder how smaller insurers could fill the void. (USA Today, 11/20)

Co-Op Closures Leave Hundreds of Thousands Scrambling for Coverage. The Washington Times (11/16) reports on the "hundreds of thousands of co-op customers" who "now find themselves rushing to find alternative plans amid a string of failures that are shutting down more than half of the 23 co-ops that have formed." In New York, for instance, the closure of Health Republic is forcing about 200,000 members to search for new coverage. According to the article, many co-ops "severely miscalculated the market." Under pressure from Congress, the Obama Administration also cut "funding that the co-ops expected." 

Global Prescription Drug Spending Expected To Increase 30% By 2020.  The AP (11/18) reports that "global spending on medicines is expected to rise three percent to six percent annually for the next five years, according to a new forecast from IMS Health." In fact, IMS Health, a health data firm, projects "global spending will increase by about 30 percent cumulatively from about $1 trillion now to about $1.3 trillion in 2020, driven by expensive new drugs, price hikes, aging populations and increased generic drug use in developing countries."
AMA Calls for Ban on Drug Ads. The American Medical Association is calling for the federal government to ban consumer-directed advertisements for prescription drugs and medical devices. The doctors' group says the ads are fueling consumer demand for costly treatments and driving an increase in drug prices. Full article, here: http://www.moneytalksnews.com/ama-calls-for-ban-prescription-drug-advertisements

Employers Embrace Health Benefits to Retain Talent. Most companies with 50 to 499 employees plan to continue offering health insurance to their teams, according to new data. In 2013, 21% of respondents to a Mercer survey indicated they were "likely" or "very likely" to stop sponsoring coverage for employees, but in a sharp contrast the most recent survey found just 7% of respondents expect to do so. Experts say employers see value in offering coverage to attract and retain talent. Read the full article here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/brucejapsen/2015/11/19/fewer-employers-consider-dropping-coverage-due-to-obamacare/
More than Half of Women "Very Concerned" about Retirement Savings. "Women are more concerned than men about how much they are saving for retirement and are more likely than men to put money away in their workplace retirement accounts yet they also view themselves as the least prepared for retirement," according to a survey. Eight in 10 women have concerns about saving enough for retirement, with 54% saying they are "very concerned." Seventy-eight percent of women say they are contributing to their workplace retirement savings plan, compared to 75% of men. "The fact that many are contributing, but also are very concerned about not being able to retire when and how they want to, implies that they may not be saving enough to feel secure about reaching their retirement goals," the report stated. The IRI survey was conducted online by market research firm Greenwald & Associates from July 28 to July 30, 2015. A total of 1,002 respondents answered the survey, 701 women and 301 men. (Employee Benefit News, 11/20)

  

MD. "On November 3, the Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) submitted a report to the legislature outlining the number of lives and contracts in health benefit plans. In 2015, approximately 2.9 million Maryland residents under age 65 had health insurance under a group plan, a decrease of approximately 1.2% compared to 2014. The individual insured market increased 35.7% from 212,613 lives in 2014 to 288,411 in 2015. The number of covered lives in the group self-insured market decreased from approximately 1.42 million to 1.4 million, a drop of 1.1%. Overall, the percent of the population covered by an insured health plan or other employment-based health plan decreased from 57.2% in 2014 to 56.3% in 2015. This compares with 68.2% in 2011." LEG REG REVIEW by Phillips Associates, 11/16)

CT. The Connecticut Mirror (11/14) reported that Connecticut's health co-op, HealthyCT, "has no plans to shut down and is marketing health plans for 2016." CEO Ken Lalime stated, "We're very confident that we're in a good position." Still, the company "has a ways to go to achieve long-term sustainability." Indeed, HealthyCT "lost $28 million in 2014 and lost $9.5 million in the first six months of this year."