Comparative Effectiveness Silences the Drug Ad Hype
Drug companies spend $6 billion per year on direct-to-consumer ads with the goal of getting patients to ask their doctors to prescribe drugs that, in many instances, cost substantially more but are less effective than their current medications. And with no comparative...
Remind Your FSA Members to Use Their 2022 Funds Before the Grace Period Ends!
If your health plan offers a grace period for members to use any remaining 2022 flexible spending account (FSA) funds, you'll want to remind them that those funds will no longer be available after March 15, 2023. Any claims submitted before that date will...
Proposed Rule Would Expand Women’s Birth Control Access
On February 2, 2023, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury (the “Tri-Agencies”) proposed a rule to expand women's access to birth control under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The proposed rule revises the exemption allowances under...
Prevention, Early Detection Contribute to Lower Cancer Mortality Rate
Prevention and early detection have contributed to a three-decade decline in cancer mortality, a new report from the American Cancer Society (ACS) finds. With an increased emphasis on being proactive about wellness exams and cancer screenings, the U.S. cancer death...
Independent Dispute Resolution on Hold Due To Lawsuit
Independent Dispute Resolution (IDR) review decisions have been placed on hold due to a lawsuit brought forth by the Texas Medical Association (TMA). The lawsuit challenges the Final Rules of the No Surprises Act, specifically those relating to how the Qualified...
Is the End in Sight for COVID-19 Mandatory Plan Compliance?
On Monday, January 30, 2023 the Biden Administration announced that both the National Health Emergency and the HHS Public Health Emergency will end on May 11, 2023. The news came in the form of a statement of administration policy typically issued in response to...
The 2023 MedBen University Season Starts Soon!
The 22nd Season of MedBen University (MBU) will soon be in session! In 2023, MBU will explore current benefit management issues and proven solutions MedBen offers, including: Reducing Rx spend through alternative specialty drug funding, as well as other pharmacy plan...
Why Health Care Costs Will Rise in 2023 – and How You Can Control Them
Even though health care costs have not seen the same rate of inflation as other industries, that's about to change. Fortunately, MedBen has a variety of inflation-hedging solutions to counter rising costs. As a recent Self-Insurer article notes, health care costs...
Plan Administrators Can Now Print Member ID Cards from MedBen Access
Plan members have always had the ability to print their ID cards, but now employers can do so as well! A new feature on the desktop version of MedBen Access allows plan administrators to select, download and print member ID cards in just a few simple steps. Both...
PBMs, GoodRx on the Legislative Hot Seat
Pharmacy benefits managers (PBMs) are increasingly being called to answer for their questionable business practices at multiple levels of government. On the state level, in recent months: A major PBM has settled with Iowa and at least 14 other states for overbilling...
Download the Annual Compliance Deadlines List
To keep you "in the know" about mandatory regulatory due dates for health plan sponsors, the MedBen Compliance team recently compiled a "Self-funded Plan Sponsors Annual Compliance Deadlines" list. We encourage you to download this document and keep it handy....
How Do Health Plans Manage High-Cost Drug Spend?
In two recent articles, we touched on the growing prevalence of high-cost drugs, some with price tags in the thousands and even millions of dollars: Drugmakers are raising prices on over 350 unique drugs this month.Innovative gene therapies have emerged that cost as...