How can we relieve margin pressure?

Almost certainly not, and that isn't a criticism of your broker. Appointment defines the shelf. The levers that move trend hardest are billed out of savings rather than commission, so they never entered that channel. 99% of the brokers we talk to have never seen them.

Real savings at your size: a hospital group at $692,300 per year, a national nonprofit retailer at $548,000, a senior living nonprofit at $285,300, a liberal arts college at $228,000. See others we've helped

At your size the answer is usually yes, and the 100, 250 and 500 employee marks are where it changes. Level-funded recovers 8 to 15% of carrier margin and returns your claims data. Self-funded gives you every dollar of savings but you carry claims risk with a stop-loss layer above it. We model both against your census before recommending either.

It pays for itself, out of savings, with significant ROI.

Coverage improves. Members get $0-copay prescriptions, same-day behavioral health and steerage to better-rated doctors inside the network they already use. The savings come out of what care and overhead cost, not out of what people receive. No deductible moves, no network narrows, no cards get reissued.

No, you don't have to wait for renewal. Cost-saving payroll bolt-ons, $0-copay pharmacy formularies, and indirect spend optimizations can be done any time of year. Insurance renegotiation can be done in the months leading up to renewal, and we can check against your last renewal any time. Waiting for the anniversary date costs a year of savings you could have had.