US employers view staff drug benefits

18 January 2001

Some 65% of US employers agree that rising drug prices will force healthplan sponsors to shift from a co-payment to a percentage-based co-insurance structure, a recent survey commissioned by the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists has found. The survey, of a sample of the Society's 3,700 US members, also found that 78% of respondents now use a co-payment structure of cost-sharing, indicating that a significant shift of many benefit structures is around the corner.

The study found that 37% of employers have already made efforts to control their costs by raising the amount of employee co-payment or co-insurance. About 31% are considering cost-sharing increases, while another 32% are thinking about implementing a formulary or altering the formulary they currently use.

It also revealed that many employers are considering the possibility of limiting coverage of lifestyle drugs like Pfizer's impotence treatment Viagra (sildenafil).

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