How Buying Health Insurance is Changing (BenefitsPro)

People who purchase their own insurance have already been taking advantage of new tools and shopping platforms that technology has enabled, but soon, writes Joshua Hilgers, the way we buy insurance will experience a fundamental change that will affect the majority of Americans. In addition to new innovations and inevitable market forces, government legislation will be a major catalyst that will usher in these changes. But, whichever way the political winds blow, the employer sponsored health plan is going the way of the employer paid pension plan, and will be virtually nonexistent after the year 2014. Going forward, writes Hilgers, employers will not choose the carrier and plan for all employees, but will simply decide eligibility and set a dollar amount to contribute. Moreover, employees will make their own decisions on plans and will be able to payroll deduct, tax free, any of their own money needed to cover their premiums.