Employee Benefits

Plan Design & Analysis

Alternative Funding

Level Funding

Level funding is an option that allows employers to pay a specified amount each month to the carrier. This specified amount typically includes administrative costs, expected claims, and other charges like stop-loss premiums. Any unused funds are refunded to the employer.

Consumer-Driven Health Plans

Introduction of a Consumer-Driven Health Plan can help with rising health care costs. High Deductible health plans drive consumerism by increasing the employee out-of-pocket costs. In most cases a consumer-driven health care plan is often paired with a spending account that both the employer and employee can contribute to. If your organization is ready to consider a consumer driven health plan, The Dunn Group can help you decide which plan is best for your organization.

Employee benefit group captives give small to midsize employers a way to gain control of the cost of employee benefits. When employee claims are extensive, your group captive absorbs the shock. When employee claims are modest, you essentially pocket a portion of the profit that would normally have gone to an insurance carrier.

Long terms savings of 20% or more and a return on risk of 30% are possible

Who benefits the most from employee benefit group captives? You. Not the insurance companies—they’ve been removed from the picture. Employee group captives are created by employers, for employers.

Your return on investment might include:

• Short-term savings through retention of the profit that would have normally gone to an insurance company, decreased state taxes, reduced, or eliminated state mandated coverages, and risk selection.
• Long-term savings through manuscript plan design (including employee incentives for positive behavioral changes), value-based benefits, reduced claims, and risk selection.
• Control through data transparency and structural optimization.
• Limited volatility through the use of the group captive as a shock absorber for large claims or substandard years.
• Group power through the use of a larger data pool and the sharing and implementation of best-in-class risk control efforts. 
• Increased employee productivity through improved employee health, which means less working while sick (presenteeism) and less missing work altogether (absenteeism)

Here at The Dunn Group, we always say, “If you’ve seen one Captive, you’ve seen one Captive.” Meaning, Captives are all built and run differently and having an experienced guide means all the difference when exploring these cost saving strategies.

Let us help determine if Captives could be the right choice for your organization.

Spending Accounts

HSA

Both the employer and employee can contribute to an HSA. Due to their tax-favored status, HSAs have strict rules regarding eligibility and contributions. There are also annual contribution limits for HSAs. Employee contributions can be taken pre-tax. Funds may roll over from year to year. HSAs are owned by the employee so they may keep them if their employment is terminated or leave employment.

Here are some of the requirements:

• Be covered by a high deductible health plan that meets IRS requirements
• Not have any other health coverage (some exceptions)
• Not be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return
• Not be covered by Medicare

HRA

(Health Reimbursement Arrangement) HRAs can only be funded by the employer.  Employees cannot contribute to their HRA.  Any unused funds can be set up to roll over year to year. Unused funds are returned to the employer should the employee’s employment end.

FSA

(Flexible Spending Account) Health FSAs are a tax favored account through which employees can contribute a set annual amount to help cover out of pocket health care expenses.  FSAs have a strict use it or lose it provision unless the employer elects to allow a rollover amount that doesn’t exceed the specified annual maximum.

Pharmacy Carve-Out

Spending on Prescription drugs continues to be an important health care concern. The rising costs, aging population, and increased use of costly specialty medications have created a need to look for alternative ways to manage your pharmacy coverages and spending. The Dunn Group can help you create a Pharmacy program that creates more transparency and offers savings you would not see under a traditional fully-insured program.

Data analysis

Data Analysis allows you to manage and reduce your claims activity. By analyzing your losses with a sophisticated data analysis tool, we can help you develop cost containment strategies.

Through Data Analysis, we can forecast projected utilization and make strategic plan design changes to minimize any potential issues.

Ancillary Benefits

Ancillary Benefits are benefits added to your core compensation and benefits package. When employers offer these benefits, employees can pick and choose what they want and need. Voluntary benefits can be either insurance or non-insurance products, and these benefits provide value in different ways. Ancillary benefits can be employer-paid or voluntary – this will be part of our strategic planning with you.

For voluntary insurance benefits, employees can take advantage of lower group rates, the convenience of automatic payroll deductions and sometimes pre-tax deductions. Most voluntary insurance products have portable coverage, which means employees can keep their policy if they end up leaving their employer. Employees will typically pay 100% of the premium for voluntary coverage. Automatic payroll deductions ensure that employees never miss insurance premium payments and accidentally trigger a lapse in coverage.

Non-insurance voluntary benefits may also be offered by an employer to add extra value to their employee benefits package. Many of these benefits are designed to offer simplicity, convenience or money-saving options for various aspects of life. For example, an employee discount program helps you save money on a variety of items and services simply for being an employee of your company.

As employers explore ways to add value to the benefits packages they offer, many voluntary benefit offerings are expanding beyond traditional voluntary benefits, such as dental and vision insurance. Contact a member of our Employee Benefits team for more details.

• Voluntary Workplace Benefits
• Voluntary Accident
• Voluntary Cancer
• Voluntary Critical Illness
• Voluntary Life (Term Life, Whole Life, Universal Life)
• Voluntary Disability

Technology

Technology has become a necessity for most employers. The recruitment, on-boarding, and day-to-day operations are streamlined with our technology that is available to our clients. We have taken the time to search for the most efficient yet robust technology to allow your HR department to go paperless from the new hire process to termination and COBRA offering. Your tech-savvy millennials will appreciate this process.

• Onboarding
• Paperless Enrollment Through Integrated Carrier Access
• Robust Employer Reporting
• Payroll Integration
• PTO Tracking
• Time & Attendance
• ACA Reporting

Wellness

Affiliations

• NAHU (National Association of Health Underwriters)
• SHRM (Society of Human Resource Management)
• PASBO (Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials) IA&B (Insurance Agents & Brokers) of PA, DE, MD
• YPO (Young Presidents’ Organization) (CEO Affiliation)
• PLNA (Pennsylvania Landscapers & Nursery Association)
• NALP (National Association of Landscape Professionals) Pennsylvania Community Providers Association
• Local Chamber of Commerce Associations
• West Branch Susquehanna Builders Association