OneExchange Announced Health Benefit Solution for Employees, Retirees

 On the heels of Towers Watson’s acquisition of Extend Health in 2012, the company has announced the launch of OneExchange, offering exchange-based health insurance options for full- and part-time employees and pre-65 and Medicare retirees. OneExchange simplifies the insurance management process including coverage issues and quality and cost of private and public health plan choices.

“Starting in 2014, the Affordable Care Act establishes guaranteed issue and standard plan designs for all individuals, and federal subsidies for those who meet certain eligibility requirements,” Bryce Williams, managing director for Exchange Solutions at Towers Watson, said. “It also creates public exchanges, or marketplaces, as a mechanism for individuals to obtain health plans.”

“Employers that decide an exchange is right for some or all of their workforce and retirees can provide access to OneExchange and realize the benefits of these regulatory changes,” said Williams. “They can use OneExchange to fund and oversee the quality and cost of their health care coverage with the counsel of a trusted and experienced advisor from a unified platform.”

Final regulations and other Affordable Care Act offerings will dictate the form of additional OneExchange solutions but they will work to:

• Connect groups, such as pre-65 retirees, part-time, and contractual workers, to plan on public exchanges;

• Provide financial analysis, modeling, and consulting services to employers regarding decisions on private and public exchange solutions; and

• Transition full-time employees to individual or group-based plans on health exchanges.