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Health insurance rates are on the rise. Commercial health care spending is estimated to reach its highest level in 13 years for group and individual markets in 2025, according to the PwC Research Institute.
Baton Rouge businesses are responding to the increased costs in different ways.
While some employers may split the costs with their employees or cut back benefits or salary increases, Adam Beary, CEO and president of local process safety firm Bear Process Safety, says he plans to continue paying his employees’ monthly premiums.
“I set a policy in place where I wanted this to be a nonnegotiable at the company,” Beary says about covering his employees’ monthly health insurance payments. “The cost has not changed our resolution, it’s still what we want to do for our employees. We know this will help them if they were ever at their worst.”
Beary has 18 full-time employees, 16 of whom receive health care benefits. Bear Process Safety covers the monthly medical, dental and vision premiums for its full-time employees and their families. All of the covered employees have a high-deductible plan with an HSA.
Despite the predicted rise in health care spending, Beary says he is committed to identifying creative ways to continue providing affordable health care for his employees, including cutting back on expenses like marketing, advertising and updating office furniture to keep his employees from paying more.
