My Bold Predictions About the Future of the Benefits Business – A Summary

In various articles in this blog, and in some of the webinars I have conducted, I have made some bold predictions about the future of the benefits technology business (as technology is my main area of expertise) and more broadly about the benefits business in general. I guess I am as qualified as anyone in this area having started in the business 30 years ago. As I have stated repeatedly, the reason I make these predictions is because for my business to survive and thrive I too need to predict, to some degree, the future so that I can make the right strategic decisions today in preparation for the years to come. The reason I am publishing these (again) is because I am looking for others in the benefits business to participate in my “think-tank” to talk about these issues and collectively formulate ideas that may be used to help our businesses thrive in the future. So this is somewhat my “call-to-arms” for anyone in the benefits business. Here is a summary of my predictions. I may be right and I may be wrong.

1. HRIS/Benefits Technologies without Payroll will become obsolete.

This is a prediction I made a few years ago and I am holding to it. As a technology consultant we help employers choose and implement HR / Benefits / Payroll technology solutions. The only demand I have for benefits only systems comes through benefits brokers. Outside of the benefits broker world I find few employers wanting stand alone Benefits or HR/Benefits systems. Yet those are the systems most brokers promote. Personally, I can think of few business reasons to have multiple systems. My company runs one system and all my employees have everything related to work through one app on their cell phone. And those that think integrating systems will work let me give you the names of a hundred employers who will debate you on that. The majority of technology issues that employers bring to me are caused by having multiple systems. Everything needs to be in one system with one database. Integration causes problems. I replace benefits enrollment systems that brokers put in for employers every day. The broker often causes the problem and now the employer wants to get rid of it. Here is my article on this prediction and the mistakes brokers are making.

2. The majority of employers with fewer than 100 employees will look for a single-source technology and services solution in the future.

Zenefits has exposed a pent-up demand in the market and that is to have some outside firm make an employer’s HR life easier. Small employers want to throw things over the wall and simply have someone else handle large parts of HR. The PEO’s, HR consulting firms, and many payroll firms already know this. Zenefits did not invent anything new here. I also believe Zenefits is really an outsourcing firm, not a technology vendor, but we can debate that somewhere else. My main point is that this demand will grow as more and more vendors enter the market. What does this mean for brokers? Brokers who do not provide such services will be replaced.

3. There will be dozens of Zenefits-like companies in the market within 6 months.

This HR/Benefits/Payroll technology and services market is no secret. The fact that employers will change brokers to move to a solution that combines HR/Benefits/Payroll technology with benefits services is also not a secret. There is a ton of money being invested into this space and vendors will be popping up everywhere. New technology vendors will arrive and get into the benefits business, but more competition will come from existing businesses offering some product or service in this market already. This will include payroll companies getting into the benefits business as brokers and HR Consultants expanding into the benefits and payroll business. I spoke to a payroll company owner this week that is getting into the benefits business. Why? Because that is where the money is. And everyone knows it. They also won’t partner with brokers. At least not the ones doing this right. Competitive pressures will require anyone in this space to leverage the benefits commission to compete. Even if the commissions is half of what it is today.

4. Small group health insurance commissions will be 50% of what they are today by 2017.

Do you know that small group commissions in Massachusetts are almost half of what they are in California? Yet, there is no shortage of brokers in MA. The carriers know this and they are getting squeezed by ObamaCare. Firms like Aetna are already cutting commissions and others will follow. One is because they can, but the other reason is because they will have to find every dime to compete. The small group market may even go to 100% fee for service. Here is an article about this here.

5. Employers will be out of the health risk business within 3-5 years.

This prediction, along with the next two, are somewhat related. I covered this in an article I wrote titled, “The Coming End to the Health Insurance Business as We Know It.”  The key term in this prediction is the “health risk” business. When I spoke at a conference on Private Exchanges I asked the employers in the audience why they would be interested in a Private Exchange. The answer was not what most brokers would think. One may think that employers want to give employees more options. Others will say they want to reduce health care costs. The answer I got was they thought that a Private Exchange would get them out of the health care business. Employers don’t want the hassle of worrying about high claimants, wellness programs, disease management, and that annual dreadful renewal meeting. They want out. That doesn’t mean they mind giving employees money to pay for part of their health care. They just want out of the risk business. And I think the market will comply. What does this mean for brokers? No more underwriting. No more claims analysis tools. No more catastrophic claims management tools. Employer based wellness to try and control health care costs will go away. For most brokers these are their core skill sets. These skills won’t be needed. Wow! This changes the world of most national benefits firms or any firm that focuses just on large group.

6. Most health insurance will be individually purchased within 3-5 years.

Think about this for a second. There is no law that would prohibit a traditional insurance company from offering all their small group pooled products to larger employers. Can an Aetna offer all the same products in the public exchanges to an  employer at the same rates as on the public exchanges? I don’t believe there is a law that says they couldn’t. It could still be a group plan but just be pool rated and with more options. Employees who leave an employer can move to a public exchange into the same plan. I think carriers may do this because the market wants it. This will get employers “out of the risk business” as I indicated in my previous prediction.

7. Provider systems will dominate the health insurance market in 5-10 years.

The largest hospital system in Massachusetts got into the health insurance business a few years ago. According to my neighbor, who was a consultant for them, said the reason they did this is because with ObamaCare the providers are getting less and less money from government programs that are adding more and more people. In order to survive the hospital system needs money from the healthy people not just less and less money from the sick people. As my neighbor said, there will be no Blue Cross version of them in 5 years. Keep these comments in mind when you read about the recent Obama/Boehner deal to lift the debt ceiling. In that deal Medicare reimbursements are getting cut 2.5%. So 5-10 years from now employees will be choosing between provider systems not health insurance companies. The providers and insurers will be one in the same.

Conclusion

Many who may read this blog or who have listened to my webinars may think I am nuts or at least way off base with some of these predictions. Many will hope I am wrong. What has really amazed me most is how slow people are to change. I wrote about the coming of a Zenefits in 2009 yet few acted. I have seen brokers lose well over a hundred thousand dollars in commission yet still not act. Or worse, they take action but it is the cheap and often wrong solution creating a false sense of security. Now I am predicting a much different future that requires further and even more profound action. I am not willing to risk my business on hope so I am taking action in my business. What am I doing? Well, stay tuned, but I am not going to tell all my secrets. Or give me a call to possibly join my think-tank. Either way, take action.