Complete Strategy Guide
Healthcare Cost Containment
Healthcare costs are rising 5–8% annually for most employers — but the best-performing plans are holding increases to 2–3% or less. The difference isn't luck; it's strategy. This hub covers every proven cost-containment lever available to self-funded employers.
Cost-containment strategies
Each strategy below is a standalone deep-dive with implementation guidance and tools.
Using claims data to identify cost drivers and target interventions.
Eliminating spread pricing, securing rebate pass-through, and managing specialty pharmacy.
Paying claims at Medicare rates instead of inflated network rates.
Employer-sponsored DPC memberships that reduce downstream utilization.
Directing high-cost procedures to top-quality, lower-cost facilities.
Steering employees to lower-cost, equally effective care settings.
Comparing your plan costs and design to industry benchmarks.
Estimate your savings potential from multiple cost-containment strategies.
Step-by-step guide to analyzing claims data, selecting strategies, and measuring results.
Answers to the most common employer questions about reducing health plan costs.
How we grade the evidence for each strategy, source savings estimates, assess employer fit, and apply AI analysis — with full transparency on methods and limitations.
Where are you leaving money on the table?
Benchmark your plan against industry data to identify your biggest cost-containment opportunities.
DPC + site-of-care strategy reduced total plan cost 17% in year one
A 175-employee Arkansas construction company cut ER utilization 34% with a DPC benefit and reduced imaging costs 63% through site-of-care steering — with an 82% member acceptance rate.
Read the case studyRenewal held flat for two consecutive years with improved benefits
A 90-employee professional services firm added DPC, restructured plan tiers, and implemented site-of-care steering — holding renewals flat for two years after back-to-back 14% and 11% increases.
Read the case studyFree assessment
Where are your biggest cost-containment opportunities?
The Benefits IQ Checkup™ screens your plan across cost, pharmacy, plan structure, and compliance — and shows you where to focus first.