Imagine that a few pills a day could transform an employee’s life — that they could get back to work, perform better, have fewer sick days, be more present and avoid continuously deteriorating health. Now, what if this life-changing medicine is for a rare disease that isn’t covered under the employee’s benefits plan because of […]
An article about an open letter that highlighted how proposed amendments to the federal Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act could have a positive impact on defined benefit plan members was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com over the last week. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. Amendments to insolvency legislation would secure DB pensions, […]
Employer-sponsored health benefits cost trends are expected to increase by a record 10 per cent on average globally in 2023, amid rising inflation and increasing health-care utilization, according to a new survey by WTW. The survey, which polled more than 250 insurers representing 55 countries, found cost trends in Canada are expected to increase by […]
More than three-quarters (78 per cent) of plan sponsors say they’re concerned about the coronavirus pandemic’s long-term impact on the cost of health benefits plans, up from 71 per cent in 2021, according to the 2022 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. Among these respondents, 31 per cent strongly agreed with this statement, up from 23 per cent […]
A majority of plan sponsors (80 per cent) and plan members (77 per cent) described the quality of their health benefits plans as excellent or good, according to the 2022 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. Employers with 500 or more employees (86 per cent) were more likely than those with fewer than 50 employees (72 per […]
A majority (88 per cent) of benefits plan sponsors are very (34 per cent) or somewhat (54 per cent) satisfied with their organization’s virtual health-care offerings, up from nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) in 2021, according to the 2022 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. More than a quarter of plan sponsors (29 per cent) and plan […]
The modern economy is highly uncertain, with inflation and rising interest rates cutting into bottom lines everywhere. Employers are nervous as the cost of capital and the cost of their inputs seems to rise every day. But employees are nervous, too. And since no one knows when inflation will end, it’s difficult for anyone to […]
After living through a prolonged global pandemic, Canadian benefits plan sponsors are facing a professional environment that’s almost unrecognizable to pre-2020 years. The coronavirus pandemic affected employees at a personal level and is also being felt by employers and their workplace benefits plans, said Jason Kennedy, general manager of virtual pharmacy for TELUS Health, during […]
Average benefits costs for U.S. employers will increase 6.5 per cent — or more than $13,800 per employee — in 2023, according to a new report by Aon. This projection is more than double the three per cent increase to health-care budgets from 2021 to 2022, but below the 9.1 inflation figure reported through the consumer price […]
While nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) of small- and medium-sized employers say cost is the biggest hurdle to offering employee benefits, a majority of SME workers say low-cost benefits or perks are most important, according to a new survey by software company PeopleKeep. It found 93 per cent of respondents said paid time off is […]