Center for Research on Health Benefits Innovation

Launched in 2010, the research center focuses on helping employers assess the impact that plan design, with goal of increasing consumer engagement, has on cost, quality, and access to health care.

The Center is funded by the following organizations.

Founding Subscribers Subscribers
Boeing
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
CVS Caremark
General Mills
IBM
Healthways
Pfizer
JP Morgan Chase
Mercer

These organizations also form the Centers' Policy Board. The Policy board sets the research agenda, determines research priorities within the constraints of available funding, and assists in data acquisition.

The Center will initially focus on three broad areas of research.

  • Behavioral economics – combines the insights from psychology with economic theory to design health benefits and to improve delivery of health care services.
  • Incentives – Employers often build financial incentives into their health benefits.  One example is three-tiered co-payments for prescription drugs.  Another is value-based benefit design.
  • Consumer-driven health benefits – Consumer driven health benefits (CDHPs) combine a high-deductible with a tax-preferred account.  The expectation is that by giving individuals more control over funds allocated for health care services they will spend the money more responsibly, especially once they become more educated about the actual price of health services.

For more information about the Research Center, participation on the Policy board, and/or funding, contact Paul Fronstin

Related to the Center is the Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey, launched by EBRI in 2005. Information about the survey can be found at http://www.ebri.org/surveys/chcs/. A list of papers from the Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey as well as other papers and projects related to the Center for Research on Health Benefits Innovation can be found below.

February 2013, EBRI Notes
"Employer and Worker Contributions to Health Reimbursement Arrangements and Health Savings Accounts, 2006–2012"

January 2013, EBRI Issue Brief #382
"Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements: Assets, Account Balances, and Rollovers, 2006–2012"

December 2012, EBRI Issue Brief #379
"Findings from the 2012 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

August 2012, EBRI Notes
"Satisfaction With Health Coverage and Care: Findings from the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

July 2012, EBRI Notes
"Health Plan Choice: Findings from the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

June 2012, EBRI Notes
"Use of Health Care Services and Access Issues by Type of Health Plan: Findings from the EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

April 2012, EBRI Notes
"Characteristics of the Population With Consumer-Driven and High-Deductible Health Plans, 2005–2011"

February 2012, EBRI Notes
"Employer and Worker Contributions to Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements, 2006–2011"

January 2012, EBRI Issue Brief #367
"Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements: Assets, Account Balances, and Rollovers, 2006–2011"

December 2011, EBRI Policy Forum Presentation
"A Total Replacement HSA Plan for Company X"

December 2011, EBRI Issue Brief #365
"Findings From the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

May 2011, EBRI Notes
"Characteristics of the CDHP Population, 2005-2010"

April 2011, EBRI Notes
"Innovations in Employment-Based Health Benefits"

March 2011, EBRI Notes
"Employer and Worker Contributions to Account-Based Health Plans, 2006-2010"

January 2011, EBRI Issue Brief #353
"Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements: Assets, Account Balances, and Rollovers, 2006-2010"

December 2010, EBRI Notes
"Who Might Respond to Financial Incentives That Use Lower Cost Sharing to Change Behavior? Findings from the 2010 Health Confidence Survey"

December 2010, EBRI Issue Brief #352
"Findings From the 2010 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

August 2010, EBRI Issue Brief #345
"What Do We Really Know About Consumer-Driven Health Plans?"

June 2010, EBRI Issue Brief #343
"Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements: Assets, Account Balances, and Rollovers, 2006–2009"

April 2010, EBRI Notes
"The Use of Health Savings Accounts for Health Care in Retirement"

February 2010, EBRI Notes
"Choice of Health Plan: Findings from the 2009 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

December 2009, EBRI Issue Brief #337
"Findings from the 2009 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

December 2009, EBRI Notes
"What Do We Know About Enrollment in Consumer-Driven Health Plans?"

November 2009, EBRI Notes
"Availability, Contributions, Account Balances, and Rollovers in Account-Based Health Plans, 2006–2009"

May 2009, EBRI Notes
"Consumer Engagement in Health Care: The Use of Lower Cost Sharing"

March 2009, EBRI Notes
"Outlook for Consumer/Patient Engagement in Health Care—30 Years into the Experiment"

December 2008, EBRI Notes
"Availability, Contributions, Account Balances, and Rollovers in Account-Based Health Plans"

November 2009, EBRI Issue Brief #323
"Findings From the 2008 EBRI Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey"

August 2008, EBRI Issue Brief #320
"Lessons From the Evolution of 401(k) Retirement Plans for Increased Consumerism in Health Care: An Application of Behavioral Research"

March 2008, EBRI Issue Brief #315
"Findings From the 2007 EBRI/Commonwealth Fund Consumerism in Health Survey"

January 2008, EBRI Issue Brief #313
"Listening to Consumers: Values-Focused Health Benefits and Education"

December 2006, EBRI Issue Brief #300
"The 2nd Annual EBRI/Commonwealth Fund Consumerism in Health Care Survey, 2006: Early Experience With High-Deductible and Consumer-Driven Health Plans"

October 2006, EBRI Notes
"How Readable Are Summary Plan Descriptions For Health Care Plans?"

February 2006, EBRI Issue Brief #288
"Designing Benefits With Evidence in Mind"

February 2006, EBRI Notes
"Survey of Consumer-Driven Health Plans Raises Key Issues"

December 2005, EBRI Issue Brief #288
"Early Experience With High-Deductible and Consumer-Driven Health Plans: Findings From the EBRI/Commonwealth Fund Consumerism in Health Care Survey"

September 2004, EBRI Issue Brief#273
"Health Savings Accounts and Other Account-Based Health Plans" 

August 2003, EBRI Issue Brief #260
"Tiered Networks for Hospital and Physician Health Care Services" 

August 2003,EBRI Notes
"Evidence-Based Medicine: Implications for Consumer-Driver Health Benefits" 

September 2002, EBRI Notes
"Consumer-Driven Health Benefits: A Continuing Evolution?"

July 2002, EBRI Issue Brief #247
"Can 'Consumerism' Slow the Rate of Health Benefit Cost Increases?"

June 2002, EBRI Issue Brief #246
"Can Defined Contribution Health Insurance Reduce Cost Growth?"

May 2, 2002 EBRI Policy Forum - "Consumer Driven Health Benefits: A Continuing Evolution?"

April 2002, EBRI Issue Brief #244
"A Temporary Fix? Implications of the Move Away From Comprehensive Health Benefits"

January 2002, EBRI Issue Brief #241
"Consumer Health Care Finances and Education: Matters of Values"

October 2001, EBRI Notes
"Two Views on Defined Contribution Health Benefits"

August 2001, EBRI Notes
"Defined Contribution Health Benefits: The Next Evolution?"

May 3, 2001 EBRI Policy Forum - "Defined Contribution Health Benefits - The Next Evolution?"

March 2001, EBRI Issue Brief #231
"Defined Contribution Health Benefits"