From new strategies for controlling health care costs and recruiting and retaining top employees, to changing regulations and compliance issues, employee benefits plans are constantly evolving.
To help you stay informed, we created The Custom Design Benefits Insider – an educational resource for Custom Design Benefits employers and brokers.
Cell and gene therapy can treat – or even cure – debilitating diseases like cancer. But a single dose can cost up to $3.5 million. Here’s what you need to know to support employees who need this treatment.
Join us August 29 for our Annual Customer Conference, where we’ll unmask the secrets to controlling health care costs, covering insights on GLP-1, gene therapy, pharmacy spend, AI, and more.
Every year, medical and pharmacy costs increase. Transparency in current and projected costs can help employers save money without sacrificing the quality of their health benefits plans.
What employers need to know about the HHS’ recently issued final rule on Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act and how it impacts certain employer-sponsored group health plans.
As health care costs continue to soar, biosimilars offer a welcome reprieve. While biological drugs, or biologics, are medications developed from living organisms, biosimilars present an alternative that is nearly (but not quite) identical. These drugs are designed to deliver the same therapeutic effects as their biologically derived counterpoints, much like a generic alternative to […]
As part of an ongoing campaign to fight anticompetitive practices in health care, federal regulators are asking members of the public to report uncompetitive and monopolistic behavior on a new online portal. With the addition of HealthyCompetition.gov, the public can now report “potentially unfair and anticompetitive health care practices” to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) […]
Managing employee leave can feel like being stuck in a maze. Take a wrong turn and you could end up violating employee privacy or paying costly noncompliance fines. What’s worse is that new regulations pop up, at the state or federal level, adding new levels to the already complex labyrinth. So how can HR professionals […]
Our team members are the heart of everything we do at Custom Design Benefits. People like Alberta Manga, RN, B.S.N., M.S.A., CRRN, LSSBB, Director, Medical & Risk Management, are the reason we can offer exceptional service to our customers. We sat down with Alberta to explore the impact of our population health management strategy. Q: […]
Ozempic and Wegovy may be good for people’s waistlines, but they are causing havoc for employers’ health care plans. The meteoric rise of these GLP-1 drugs in the past few years has left employers struggling to find a way to manage escalating prescription drug costs. While originally used to treat Type-2 diabetes, GLP-1s have taken […]
An employee’s health is about more than blood pressure and broken bones. More and more, an employee’s mental health is a bellwether for them being a happy and healthy – and productive – member of the team. In today’s work environment, companies must recognize the critical role mental health plays in employee well-being and overall organizational […]
Custom Design Benefits, a leading third party administrator providing innovative cost containment solutions for self-funded employers, is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Emerging Therapy Solutions® (ETS) to help employers manage the high costs associated with treatments for rare genetic and complex diseases. With many new cell and gene therapies approved by the FDA […]
Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) of 2021, reporting for 2023 data is due no later than June 1. What is the Consolidated Appropriations Act, Section 204? Title II (Transparency) of Division BB of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Pub. L. 116- 260) (CAA), establishes new protections for consumers to promote transparency in health care […]
With approval rates of high-cost CAR T-cell and gene therapies escalating, the time has come for employers to get proactive about managing their potential risk appropriately. CAR T-cell and gene therapies are designed to treat extremely rare diseases such as blood disorders, cancers, and metabolic and neurogenerative diseases by transferring live cells into the body […]
While the list of challenges facing the health care industry continues to grow, Custom Design Benefits has never been more aligned and focused on helping our clients and brokers navigate these choppy waters. With our 16th Annual Customer Conference, we shared how we can work together to address these issues with new solutions. This year’s […]
When it comes to prescription medications, one size does not always fit all. What works for one person might not work for another for a variety of factors. Pharmacogenomics, a groundbreaking field, uses DNA to predict how your body processes medications and potential side effects before you take them. In the U.S., about 99% of […]
CuraLinc Healthcare, which manages Custom Design Benefits’ SupportLinc Employee Assistance Program, is helping more CDB members break down barriers to mental health care. At Custom Design Benefits’ recent Customer Conference, CuraLinc Health Care client relationship managers Catherine Caldwell and Hannah Harnack provided some updated data revealing how CuraLinc is making getting help easier than ever […]
Identifying chronic conditions early to keep members as healthy as possible for as long as possible is the goal of Custom Design Benefit’s Population Health Management team. By helping members improve their health on an individual level, this approach also helps reduce the cost of health care for all. Members who are found to have […]
Rachel Jones is the Director of Client Services at Custom Design Benefits, where she leads client support activities including plan implementation, strategic initiatives, and account management. Before joining Custom Design Benefits, Rachel spent 13 years working for a local medical device manufacturer where she focused on team development, sales support, contract management and process improvement. […]
Lack of access to quality primary care is one of the biggest drivers of health care costs. Without access, medical conditions are more likely to progress to advanced stages, giving patients no other option than to turn to expensive emergency room care for non-emergency issues. Poorly managed conditions and inadequate follow-up to care also lead […]
In the ever-evolving landscape of health care compliance, staying informed about crucial topics is essential. In his presentation, Ron E. Peck, Esq., Chief Legal Officer for The Phia Group, gave Custom Design Benefit customers and brokers a crash course in some of the issues that everyone involved in self-funded benefits plans needs to be aware […]
With specialty drug expenses exceeding more than 60% of the total pharmacy spend for some group health plans, it’s no surprise that employers are having to shift more costs to their members. But as the cost for the member goes up, the chances they will actually take the drug after it has been prescribed goes […]
Find out how CDB helped one manufacturer dive deeper into the data.
Welcome back everyone! We’ve got a lot of exciting news to share with you in this issue of our newsletter. Or to be more precise, our very first e-newsletter!
From reference-based pricing to Ted Lasso and mental health, here’s a look at some of the headlines and issues that are impacting health care and benefit plans.
We can make replacing your current carrier seamless.
If you’ve been paying attention to the news lately, more and more states are mandating paid family and medical leave benefits. CDB can help you manage more types of leave.
HHS is preparing to end the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) for COVID-19 on May 11, 2023. The change in status is expected to impact health benefit plans.
Insurance companies and employer-based health plans must submit information about prescription drugs and health care spending. Learn what we're doing to help you comply with the requirement.
How can you get a copy of the 2023 Annual Notices and Compliance Guide? Find out in this article.
