As small businesses continue to face rising healthcare costs, Elevance Health’s affiliated health plans are delivering solutions that help employers offer competitive benefits, improve health outcomes, and keep costs more affordable and more predictable.
Recent research shows small businesses and their employees have experienced healthcare cost increases of 26% over the past five years, underscoring the need for more stable and predictable solutions.
Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, yet they often lack the scale and flexibility larger employers have to manage healthcare expenses. Through innovative funding options like Balanced Funding* and Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements* (MEWAs), Elevance Health’s affiliated health plans are working to make healthcare accessible and reduce costs for employers and their employees.
“Small businesses are navigating significant cost pressures, and healthcare is often one of their largest expenses,” said Morgan Kendrick, EVP and President, Commercial Health Benefits, Elevance Health. “Our Balanced Funding and MEWA solutions are designed to give employers greater cost stability, shared risk protection, and tools that support preventive care. When costs are more predictable and employees stay healthier, businesses are better positioned to grow and compete.”
Predictable Costs with Balanced Funding
Balanced Funding provides small and mid-size employers with a fixed monthly payment and built-in safeguards that cap financial risk. When employee healthcare costs are lower than expected, employers may receive money back — creating shared incentives around prevention and early care.
Balanced Funding also helps employers:
- Avoid some of the fees and taxes associated with traditional fully insured plans.
- Access monthly financial and employee health reporting to better understand cost drivers including hospital and prescription drug costs.
- Encourage preventive and primary care that helps people get care earlier and avoid more costly health issues later on.
Coordinated care and better health outcomes are the foundation for lower costs across the healthcare system. When employees access care earlier, small problems are less likely to turn into costly emergencies. Balanced Funding supports preventive care, chronic condition management, and offers integrated pharmacy and behavioral health services to help employees stay healthier and avoid preventable complications.
Strength in Numbers Through MEWAs
MEWAs allow small employers to band together, pooling employees into a larger risk group to gain access to competitive rates and broader benefit options. MEWAs partner with state or local chambers and farm bureaus to share claims risk, allowing participating businesses to benefit from the purchasing power and stability typically available only to larger organizations.
MEWAs are seeing success in markets across the country. Recently, Elevance Health’s affiliated health plan in Kentucky celebrated the fifth anniversary of its partnership with the Kentucky Chamber, with 4,200 employers participating statewide, and an estimated $400 million in employer savings since the program’s inception.
“The ChamberAdvantage program has been transformational for organizations like ours,” said Tony Emberton, Financial Administrator of Potter Children’s Home and a member of the Kentucky MEWA Board of Trustees. “It allows us to provide high-quality health coverage for our employees at a cost that’s sustainable for our mission. Lowering healthcare costs and having more stability is invaluable—and it’s exactly what employers need to keep serving their communities.”
Similarly in Ohio, Elevance Health’s affiliated health plan, through its partnership with the Southern Ohio Chamber Alliance, marks its tenth anniversary, generating an estimated $1.3 billion in employer savings since the program’s inception, and currently serving 94,000 Ohioans across the state.
Together, these programs demonstrate sustained savings and long-term cost stability for local employers, helping them attract, retain, and support a healthy workforce.
Simplified Healthcare Navigation for Employees
Beyond funding structures, affiliated health plans support lowering healthcare costs through digital tools and care teams. Employees can access digital tools like the Sydney Health app, and care teams, to compare care settings, understand costs, and choose what works best for their health and budget. The Sydney Health app has saved people an estimated 1.5 million hours by making it faster and easier to find and compare care.
By combining innovative funding models with digital access, preventive care, and coordinated support, Elevance Health’s affiliated health plans are helping small businesses deliver meaningful benefits. These solutions also help employers achieve more consistent and predictable healthcare costs over time.
*Availability of Balanced Funding and Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements (MEWAs) may vary by state.
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