Six Healthcare Trends Employers Can’t Afford to Ignore in 2024
Employers are facing immense healthcare cost pressures going into 2024. According to industry experts, medical benefit expenses are predicted to rise 5.4% next year — outpacing the 3-4% average annual increases seen over the past decade. This spike ties back to factors like lingering inflation, more expensive treatments, and pandemic care deficits coming due.
The Shocking High Cost of Covering Obesity Drugs
A new survey reveals that the costs of covering increasingly popular obesity drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are quickly mounting for employers. But with demand from employees high and potential health benefits significant, more companies are considering taking on the pricey medications.
Enhancing School Bus Driver Safety and Student Well-being
Ensuring the safety of school bus drivers is paramount, given the vital role they play in transporting students to and from school each day. While sprains, strains, and muscle tears are common injuries among bus drivers, the most costly incidents in schools often stem from motor vehicle accidents.
10 Essential Cybersecurity Controls
Cyber incidents—including data breaches, ransomware attacks and social engineering scams—have become increasingly prevalent, impacting organizations of all sizes and industries. Such incidents have largely been brought on by additional cyberthreat vectors and growing attacker sophistication. As these incidents continue to rise in both cost and frequency, it’s crucial for organizations to take steps to address their cyber exposures and bolster their digital security defenses.
Supporting Caregivers in the Workplace
In 2023, 38 million people across the U.S. provided unpaid care for their loved ones, according to AARP. Another study from Harvard Business School estimated that 73% of employees have some caregiving responsibility, making caregivers the fastest-growing employee group.
Best Practices for Return-to-Work Programs
One of the biggest components of workers’ compensation is an effective return-to-work (RTW) program. Eliminating injuries and illnesses is paramount for reducing workers’ compensation costs, but after an incident, an RTW program can significantly reduce workers’ compensation costs for employers and improve the lives of employees by getting them back to work when there is an injury or illness. This article provides an overview of RTW programs and discusses the best practices for establishing and maintaining such programs.