By Bob Graham, Insurance & Financial Advisor
The majority of large-company employers say they are relying on their benefits brokers and consultants to provide them information on health care reform legislation, according to a new MetLife survey.
Exactly 57% of these employers say their brokers or consultants are the key resource, eclipsing their reliance on business media (42%), general audience media (37%) and industry publications (32%), MetLife found.
“We have seen a great appetite for information on health care reform,” said Ronald Leopold, M.D. and vice president of U.S. Business for MetLife, in a statement. “Our study also reveals a tremendous opportunity for insurance brokers and benefits consultants to help better educate their clients. In turn, well-informed employers will be better positioned to share with their employees the implications of health care reform on their personal situations.”
A total of 83% of employers – from all sizes of companies – are paying close attention to health care reform, while just 75% of individuals are keeping close tabs on the plans for comprehensive federal health care reform.
More than eight-in-ten (85%) individuals and 56% of employers cite traditional media outlets (TV, radio, newspapers and magazines) as preferred sources.
The MetLife Study of Employer/Consumer Attitudes on Health Care Reform surveyed employers and working age consumers to assess their attitudes toward potential health care reform legislation. The telephone survey, fielded in November 2009, involved 501 interviews conducted with benefits decision-makers at companies with 10 or more employees, representing a mix of industries and geographic regions, and 701 interviews were conducted with consumers between the ages of 21 and 65.
Bob Graham can be reached at bgraham[at]ifamedia.com.