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Education Remains Key to ACA, Local Experts Say
BOARDMAN, Ohio -- Implementation of the Affordable Care Act remains an educational process for insurance carriers, employers, employees and individuals seeking coverage under the law. So say health insurance brokers and a representative of one insurance provider who participated in The Business Journal’s Affordable Care Roundtable, to be published tomorrow in our July edition.
People who have sought information “feel reasonably comfortable with the law,” reported George Morris, president of Morris Financial Group, Salem. “I don’t think the employers have really felt it totally yet. The next 12, 18, up to maybe 24 months is when you’re going to see the impact,” he said. Some employees are seeking out information and “forward-thinking employers are allowing firms to have at least some sort of dialogue with their staff.”
How well employers understand the law depends largely upon “the position that you’re approaching it from” and the kind of entity involved, observed Brad White, CEO of the Tartan Companies, Boardman. “If it’s a small group versus a large group versus an individual, how they look at the Affordable Care Act is much different,” he said.
“What we have found is the groups that understand it the most are the self-insured groups. They’re the most involved in it so far, I’d say,” while the small groups that look to their carriers understand the ACA least, White continued.
In terms of employees, the ones involved with the group health plan tend not to understand it well at all. As long as they have employer-based health care, they are looking to see what options are presented to them, White said.
“The ones that are small group, that are being kind of pushed or led to the marketplace, they’re getting an education fairly rapidly,” White added.
Much depends on the organization and the organization’s approach to health insurance, affirmed Robert Gearhart, vice president of DC Wellness, Boardman. A large part of his company’s “business book is very aggressive and proactive and is hungry for knowledge,” he said.
“On the other side of the coin, unfortunately, a lot of the groups we’re working with this year are being reactive and have already been stung, so to speak, on parts of the law,” Gearhart said. “We’re doing more communication than ever with employers and employees.”
“It’s very hard for the employers,” confirmed Ray Kashmiry, president of R. Kashmiry and Associates, Boardman. “When [the law] first came on, there were so many rules and so many changes in the Affordable Care Act during the period before it kicked in. We’ve put information on our website and every time there was a change in the Affordable Care Act, we tried to educate our clients.”
Larger employers with a dedicated human resources staff “are definitely more up to speed,” reported Nancy Kuzenko, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Youngstown. “On the smaller side, we’ve done a number of reach-outs and seminars coordinated with the [Youngstown/Warren] Regional Chamber to pull in and educate the small employers as well as the individuals,” she said. “This is the segment that relies on the carrier communication and the communication from their broker to get educated.”
At Paige & Byrnes Insurance, Warren, which concentrates on the small group and individual side, there is “a lot of confusion” among clients, acknowledges Bob Hoy. “There seems to be a tendency for a lot of ‘Let’s wait and see’ if they don’t have to make a decision yet,” he said.
“It’s a concern of mine -- what’s going to happen,” Hoy said. “It’s like a bubble that’s going to pop.”
For the most part, he said, costs are going up. For individuals who are eligible for subsidies, the subsidy is reducing the cost of insurance “but it still isn’t affordable because of the size of the deductible and the out-of-pocket,” Hoy said.
"It's constantly changing," said Dan Carpaso, president of National Healthcare Access Inc., Poland. "We don't have all of the answers. It's a moving target."
Employers at the national level are more confused than ever, he said. "Again, you have some proactive, some reactive. The general consensus is they're confused.... It's important to stay on top of it as best we can and really educate ourselves and educate our clients."
Copyright 2014 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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