19 Hoosier Banker March 2015 Navigating the world of employee benefits is rarely a simple task. The costs can be measured in more than dollars – additional expenses are time, energy, stress, confusion and lack of resources when it comes to choosing and administering employee benefits. All too often, employee satisfaction is trumped by the bottom line, and middle ground can be difficult to find. The IBA Group Insurance Trust offers a solution that bridges the gap between cost-effectiveness and simplified processes for health and welfare plans. For over 50 years, the trust has sponsored a group insurance program as a service and benefit to IBA members and their employees. With competitive rates and a long list of additional services, the trust has become the easy choice for IBA members. Through a longstanding relationship with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, the IBA Trust offers its members the security of rate protection and stability. Each group is underwritten individually by Anthem, assessing and providing appropriate rates for the risk of the group, and contributing to the long-term viability of the trust. The trust enjoys other financial benefits, too, including a participating contract. This means that the trust retains surplus premiums, which accrue as assets, and in years with higher premium increases, those assets are used to offset the increases. Although rates are set conservatively by trustees who have a fiduciary responsibility to do so, these excess funds have helped to keep the trust’s annual rate increases down to an average of 7 percent per year from 2005 to 2014, while the national trend has averaged an annual increase of 11.5 percent. From community-rated plans to “grandmothering,” the new landscape of health benefits is continually evolving, and parts of developing legislation have already had a profound effect on employer-sponsored health and welfare plans. Another advantage of the IBA Group Insurance Trust is that its groups are able to escape some expensive changes in legislation, such as community ratings. Today, groups with two to 50 employees are subject to community ratings, which can mean astronomical rate increases of 25 percent or more. As of Jan. 1, 2016, groups with two to 99 employees will face the same financial challenge, making the trust an even more attractive solution to banks of any size. IBA Group Insurance Trust members also enjoy a host of additional services to simplify the insurance process from a human resources standpoint. Groups have access to a state-of-the-art online enrollment tool, which is integrated with COBRA and HIPAA administration. Every group also receives access to Compliancedashboard, the leading online compliance tool, which implements a simplified system to manage an employer’s legal ERISA and ACA compliance responsibilities. These technologies make life easier for banks’ human resources professionals who have most likely spent countless hours trying to decipher mountains of paperwork full of legal jargon. In addition to Compliancedashboard and the online enrollment system, IBA Group Insurance Trust, its attorney and its consultants monitor and alert members of ACA updates, and how new developments could potentially impact them. Consolidated billing is another coveted benefit of the trust. Plans purchased from any insurance vendors through the trust, such as medical, dental and life, are combined into one bill. The trust provides multiple options for plans through its brokers, so groups still have the freedom to choose the best matches for their employees. Included with these plans is a plug-and-play wellness program, which includes built-in premium discounts when employees achieve a predetermined amount of points. No longer do groups have to choose between saving money and keeping their employees happy when it comes to their health and welfare plans. The IBA Group Insurance Trust is the solution that provides both. t About the Author Rod Lasley is vice president-products & services of the Indiana Bankers Association, and also serves as president of the for-profit companies owned by the IBA. He can be reached at 317-387-9380, email: rlasley@indianabankers.org. PSP SHOWCASE Simplify Health and Welfare Plans With IBA Group Insurance Trust IBA Group INSURANCE TRUST
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