For years, Indiana businesses have accepted rising healthcare costs as inevitable. But that's changing. More employers are realizing they don’t have to accept double-digit rate increases, vague pricing, or outdated insurance models.
Across the state, businesses are taking direct control of their healthcare spending—and seeing real results. Whether you have 50 employees or 500, you have options to lower costs, offer stronger benefits, and protect your margins.
In this article, we’ll explain how Indiana employers are reshaping healthcare strategies—and how you can take the same steps to build a more sustainable future for your business.
How Indiana Employers Are Reclaiming Control Over Healthcare Costs
Indiana businesses are proving that healthcare costs are not a fixed expense. They are moving away from traditional models, negotiating smarter deals, and demanding better value for their healthcare dollars.
Here’s how Indiana employers are taking control of their healthcare spend:
- Moving Away from Fully Insured Plans: Instead of paying inflated premiums with little insight into actual costs, many employers are shifting to self-funded health plans. This model allows businesses to pay only for the healthcare their employees actually use.
- Direct Contracting with Providers: Some businesses are bypassing insurance carriers altogether, negotiating directly with hospitals and physicians to lock in fair, transparent pricing.
- Demanding Full Transparency: Employers are requiring detailed reporting on claims and costs, benchmarking provider pricing, and eliminating hidden fees that drive up healthcare spending.
- Investing in Employee Healthcare Education: Companies are helping employees navigate their benefits smarter—using telemedicine, understanding preventative care options, and avoiding costly emergency room visits.
By taking these steps, Indiana employers are achieving savings of 15–30%—while improving access to care and strengthening employee satisfaction.
What You Can Do to Take Back Control
If you’re serious about reducing healthcare costs and building a stronger business, you have clear, proven options. Indiana employers who are lowering their costs and improving their benefits aren’t relying on hope—they’re using specific strategies that work.
By taking action now, you can avoid unnecessary expenses, regain control over one of your largest business costs, and create a more stable foundation for future growth. Here’s where to start:
1. Move to a Self-Funded Health Plan
Self-funding gives you direct control over healthcare spending. Instead of prepaying insurers based on projections, you pay for the care your employees actually use—nothing more.
This model offers flexibility to design a plan that fits your workforce and provides real transparency into how your healthcare dollars are spent. It allows you to:
- Gain access to real-time claims data to make smarter decisions
- Avoid inflated administrative fees tied to fully insured plans
- Tailor benefits to better meet the needs of your employees
Businesses that successfully move to self-funding often reinvest their savings into better benefits, salary growth, or expansion initiatives. Taking control of your healthcare plan is a smart move that strengthens both your financial health and employee loyalty.
2. Direct Contracting with Healthcare Providers
Negotiating directly with providers gives you better pricing, more transparency, and stronger healthcare partnerships.
You don’t need to be a massive employer to negotiate direct contracts. Many Indiana businesses are successfully securing predictable, competitive rates with hospitals, surgery centers, and physician groups, allowing them to:
- Lock in fixed pricing for common procedures and services
- Build relationships with high-quality local providers
- Offer employees better access to affordable, reliable care
Direct contracting strengthens your healthcare strategy by removing unnecessary middlemen and putting you in control of both costs and quality.
3. Demand Transparency and Accountability from Vendors
Smart employers are demanding full transparency from insurance carriers, third-party administrators, and healthcare vendors. You should too.
When you push for clear reporting and real accountability, you uncover opportunities to eliminate waste, negotiate better deals, and protect your healthcare budget. You should:
- Require detailed claims and fee reporting
- Benchmark service pricing against fair market rates
- Hold vendors to clear performance and cost standards
Transparency isn’t a luxury—it’s a requirement for controlling healthcare costs and building a sustainable strategy. Businesses that prioritize it put themselves in a stronger financial position and create better outcomes for their employees.
How Indiana employers are taking control of their healthcare spend isn’t a story about large corporations—it’s a roadmap for any business willing to rethink traditional insurance.
You don’t have to accept double-digit rate increases. You don’t have to keep absorbing hidden costs year after year. You have the ability to take control, lower your expenses, and deliver stronger benefits to your team.
Employers who act now will protect their margins, strengthen employee satisfaction, and position their businesses for lasting growth. Those who continue to accept the old model will face rising costs, shrinking competitiveness, and growing employee frustration.
Ready to take control of healthcare costs and keep your workforce strong? Download our free guide, "The Employer’s Guide to Fixing Indiana’s Broken Healthcare System," and explore how leading Indiana businesses are doing it.
Please let us know if you have any questions. We understand that local companies have unique needs that most national firms don’t consider or struggle to identify. This leaves your people with a less effective, one-size-fits-all benefits plan. However, our ability to cater to the needs of our clients comes from decades of client partnerships. This perspective allows us to fully address unique needs and generate creative benefits plans.
You shouldn’t have to worry about just being a number, offering a generic plan, or getting the unique support you need. Call us today.
This Benefits Insights is not intended to be exhaustive nor should any discussion or opinions be construed as professional advice.