Impact of Self-Insured Organizations

Impact of Self-Insured Organizations There is a large part of consumer choice that follows the insurance plan. While consumers can ultimately choose to go to any hospital for care, their chosen provider may only practice at certain hospitals, and based on insurance policies, they may have to pay significantly more to go to a place that is considered out of network. One way that larger organizations have looked to control costs when it comes to insurance is to be self-insured. This means that instead of a third-party insurance company taking on the payment of employee health costs, the organization itself takes this on. In this way, organizations can save money by only paying for those who use services versus paying some type of premium for all. In addition, organizations can reduce costs significantly when they invest in the health of their employees; this could be gym memberships or smoking cessation programs. Some hospitals even offer incentives to employees for taking part in these types of programs. From a marketing perspective, there are two opportunities around self-insured organizations. One is to market to future employees regarding what is offered around caring for your health. The second opportunity is for non-employee consumers. One of the best ways to see how a hospital will treat you as a consumer is to see how they treat their employees. Recognizing programs for employees on social media can actually attract consumers as well!