This paper examines data from the SHRM/EBRI 2014 Health Benefits Survey. The survey was conducted in February and March 2014 by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) to better understand changes to employer-sponsored health coverage in 2015. Plan sponsors -- especially larger employers -- usually have a sense of the changes they are going to make to their health benefits a year early, as it takes time to prepare such information to communicate during open-enrollment season. About 3,300 plan sponsors were interviewed this year, with 55.6 percent employing between 100 and 2,499 workers. They were distributed throughout the United States, represented different types of businesses and sectors, and different business activities. Collectively, these plan sponsors employed 5.1 million workers in 2014 and spent $30 billion on health coverage in 2013. The survey focused on upcoming changes in eligibility, financial incentives, and plan design other than traditional use of premiums, deductibles, and co-payments for office visits and prescription drugs. The SHRM/EBRI 2014 Health Benefits Survey found that only 1 percent of plan sponsors are planning to eliminate health benefits in 2015. However, while most workers will not see major changes to their benefits next year, they are likely to see a continuation of changes that employers have been making for a number of years. A relatively large number of employers continue to introduce wellness rewards and penalties, possibly the result of the combination of the PPACA-allowed higher financial incentives and the 2018 excise tax on high-cost health plans. Employers may also be focusing on wellness programs because of the link to worker risks and behaviors, which drive chronic conditions and account for a large percentage of overall health spending. Few employers are planning to make changes to eligibility for spousal coverage and part-time worker benefits, and few are moving toward tiered networks, private health insurance exchanges, value-based insurance design, and reference pricing. Employers may be waiting for evidence from early adopters before making untested changes. Ultimately, concerns about the excise tax on high-cost health plans may result in accelerated adoption of tiered networks, private health insurance exchanges, value-based insurance design, and reference pricing
