Keyword: cost management

193 results found
N.S. auditor general report highlights troubling state of teachers’ pension plan

A report from Nova Scotia’s auditor general is once again highlighting the “troubling” state of the Nova Scotia teachers’ pension plan, which is 78.4 per cent funded and has a $1.4 billion deficit. The province is responsible for half of that figure. Auditor general Michael Pickup warned there is no formal plan on how to deal with […]

Ontario to reduce WSIB premium rate for employers

Due to the elimination of the unfunded liability of Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board’s insurance fund, premium rates for employers will be reduced by almost 30 per cent. Beginning Jan. 1, 2019, the reduction will help employers save money, increase investment and create more jobs, resulting in a $1.45 billion injection into the Ontario economy, according […]

  • By: Staff
  • September 26, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 15:30
Just 7% of U.S. workers pay no deductible for health plan: survey

Among American employees enrolled in an employer-sponsored health plan, just seven per cent pay no deductible, according to a new survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. Among those with single coverage, nearly half (46 per cent) of respondents pay a deductible between $1,000 and $2,999, followed by $500 to $999 (19 per cent), under […]

  • By: Staff
  • September 13, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 15:15
Rising cost of drugs, benefits plans top priorities for employers: survey

The escalating cost of drugs and benefits plans are among the top priorities for Canadian employers, according to a new survey by Aon. The survey, which polled nearly 200 Canadian plan sponsors about their priorities related to group benefits and their workforces, found rising drug costs, in general, escalating specialty drug prices, in particular, and the increasing cost of extended health are the […]

  • By: Staff
  • September 7, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 09:15
A look at how some ASO plan sponsors are impacting stop-loss premiums

As September approaches, activity in the catastrophic stop-loss insurance market will start to heat up for self-insured plan sponsors. This is when the annual dance of plans obtaining their proposed premium for the coming year, and trying to find ways to mitigate the increase, hits a fever pitch. Imagine a province, without a single provincial insurer, […]

  • August 28, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 08:15

High-cost drugs accounted for 41.6 per cent of patented medicine sales in 2017, up from 8.3 per cent a decade earlier, according to the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board’s latest annual report. Federal Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor tabled the report, which also illustrated a rise in the sales of patented medicines in 2017. Sales […]

  • By: Staff
  • August 24, 2018 March 31, 2021
  • 09:15
Knowledge of private coverage affects doctors’ prescribing behaviour: survey

The vast majority (87 per cent) of physicians said the knowledge that a patient has private drug coverage affects their prescribing behaviour, according to a survey by Merck Canada Inc. More specifically, the survey found 26 per cent of general practitioners and 28 per cent of specialists believe this knowledge widens the treatment options available to the patient. Other effects […]

  • By: Staff
  • August 20, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 09:15
Private drug plan claims, cost per claimant on the rise, finds new research

Between 2012 and 2016, Canada’s total private drug claims market increased by a 4.7 per cent compound annual growth rate, according to new research by Innovative Medicines Canada. The analysis, which is based on IQVIA Inc.’s Canadian private drug plan claims database, aims to highlight the key drivers of private drug plan cost growth for the period. “Often the […]

Have your say: Are incentives for orthotics claims a concern for benefits plans?

A red flag goes up for Dan Mead whenever an orthotics customer comes into his clinic asking about getting free shoes. “Clearly, we do see the issue, because patients do come in to our office, just speaking anecdotally . . . and you can tell what they’re looking for,” says Mead, a certified prosthetist and […]

Orphan drugs hit 42% of new pharmaceuticals in Canada in 2016

Orphan drugs represent a significant and growing share of new pharmaceutical entrants in Canada, according to a new report from the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board. At 54 per cent of new pharmaceuticals entering the market in 2015 and 42 per cent in 2016, orphan drugs have seen a significant rise from an average of 33 […]

  • By: Staff
  • June 27, 2018 September 13, 2019
  • 15:53