Kicking the crap out of the benefits world, one test at a time
I kicked the crap out of my first Certified Employee Benefits Specialist exam today. Group Health Plan Design: I OWN YOU.
I own you so much that I can tell my readers:
- It's generally thought of as a bad thing when people who actually need insurance sign up for it; so much so that this concept is referred to as Adverse Selection.
- Your (stupid) Wellness Program only has to be HIPAA compliant if you offer incentives based on health status related factors.
- Insurance is similar to gambling, except that when gambling you actually have a chance of gaining something.
- People in these categories cost a lot more than their counterparts when it comes to dental insurance: older people, women, those in large metropolitan areas, those who make a decent salary & white collar workers.
- The Mental Health Parity Act has largely failed to accomplish it's objectives because 87% of complying health plans evaded the spirit of the law by using day and visit limits to maintain unequal benefit levels for mental versus physical disorders.
Group Benefits Management: You're on notice as next in line. I'll be seeing you.
8 comments:
Congrats! Those classes/exams are difficult!
Congratulaions on the benefits asskicking!
Have I told you lately that I love you
Have I told you there's no one else above you
Fill my heart with gladness, take away all my sadness
Ease my troubles, that's what you do
CONGRATS!
Congratulations!!!
A late congratulations!
And a very late thank you to all and to all a good night :)
Insurance is similar to gambling, except that when gambling you actually have a chance of gaining something.
Kinda sorta related: I used to work for a health insurance company. At open enrollments, people would complain to me that they spent all this money on insurance and never got anything out of it. I would ask them if they really wanted to get their money's worth from their health insurance. That usually shut them up.
Me, I'd rather pay $10,000 and never file a claim than need a $100,000 transplant or have a sick baby.
CF - That is a great response, "do you really want to get your money's worth from your health insurance?!!"
It's sad how bare bones many plans are becoming though. Personally, I just had a routine, preventative exam and guess how much of it was covered by my insurance? $0. And this is once per year PREVENTATIVE care! It's a PPO that costs about $550/month. I couldn't believe it.
I was skimming the latest HR Magazine from SHRM yesterday and say a headline that said "$1,000 deductible plans becoming the norm." Holy crap. It's turning into auto insurance - you have to have it but it doesn't cover anything without putting you in the poor house first.
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