Health Care Capabilities Boosted with S.S. Nesbitt & Company and Northwestern Benefits Merger
Birmingham, Ala. – April 30, 2013 – With new regulations of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) kicking in next year, employers are bracing for the impact that health care insurance changes will have on their businesses. Northwestern Benefits of Alabama and S.S. Nesbitt & Company merged their group benefits teams on April 16, 2013, strengthening their abilities to provide guidance regarding ACA.
“Our two firms were already at the forefront as thought leaders in heath care consulting,” said Scott Smith, who joined S.S. Nesbitt from Northwestern Benefits as Executive Vice President-Director of Employee Benefits. “Now that we’ve combined, there isn’t another competitor with our capabilities to navigate, not just health care, but the entire employee benefit space.”
Smith noted that more and more clients seek to fully overhaul their benefits programs. “With the Affordable Care Act, a lot of companies are reevaluating how to spend their employee benefit dollars,” he said. “Health care makes up most of those dollars. They are taking a step back, looking at the spectrum of their business, and asking if there a better way to do this.”
Answering clients’ difficult questions about health care reform compliance, wellness education, and group benefits products has become an easier task with the S.S. Nesbitt and Northwestern Benefits merger. “S.S. Nesbitt has well-established property and casualty, group benefits, and personal insurance departments,” said S.S. Nesbitt President Steve Nesbitt. “With the addition of Northwestern Benefits, we will further enhance the services we can offer to existing clients and all Northwestern Benefits clients. We strive to offer our clients a vast array of pertinent services from our experienced staff with the goal always being to deliver solutions for their risk management needs.”
S.S. Nesbitt, one of the leading independent insurance agencies in Alabama, is backed by EBSCO Industries, Inc., a corporation with more than 60 years of success, 40 diverse businesses, and facilities in 20 countries. A provider of all lines of insurance, S.S. Nesbitt supports clients in the areas of personal insurance, employer-sponsored group benefits, and individual life and financial planning. S.S. Nesbitt’s new partner, Northwestern Benefits, helps companies manage cost, support culture, and streamline administration and enrollment functions of all benefits. They offer such services as medical cost control and analysis, Wellness, Dental, Life, Disability, Vision, benefit technology and online enrollment, ongoing benefit administration, benchmarking, and other analytical services.
One service, Navigate, provides a solution to the daunting regulations that come with health care reform. The program guides businesses to the compliance plan that fits them best, lowering benefits cost by 12 to 27 percent. Navigate updates to reflect changes in federal regulations, staff size, and inflation, making it essential for strategic planning. Smith said, “The analytical tools that we have available for clients provide impact analysis, financial modeling, contribution analysis, legal and compliance support, integrated wellness plans, and comprehensive planning tools.”
These tools and the combined expertise of S.S. Nesbitt and Northwestern Benefits can address any challenges that come with ACA. “One of my clients said, ‘When you look at the new world of employee benefits, you realize you need more than someone to just shop your benefits,” said Smith. “You need an attorney for legal work, an accountant for tax guidance, and a true benefit consultant that understands the market to help guide you through this new era of employee benefits.”
About Northwestern Benefits
Northwestern Benefits of Alabama is a regional employee benefits consulting firm helping companies manage cost, support culture, and streamline administration and enrollment functions of all benefits. Medical cost control and analysis, Wellness, Dental, Life, Disability, Vision, benefit technology and online enrollment, ongoing benefit administration, benchmarking, and other analytical services are only a part the services offered through Northwestern Benefits.
About S.S. Nesbitt & Company
S.S. Nesbitt & Company is one of the leading independent insurance agencies in Alabama and operates multiple locations in the southeastern U.S. In 2001, S.S. Nesbitt merged with EBSCO’s insurance provider R.A. Brown—in business since 1890—increasing its commercial insurance offerings. S.S. Nesbitt’s commercial clients include businesses in construction, manufacturing, aviation, food services, multi-family and student housing, and professional services, among many others. A provider of all lines of insurance, S.S. Nesbitt also supports clients in the areas of personal insurance, employer-sponsored group benefits, and individual life and financial planning. Its risk management specialists average 20 years of experience in the insurance field. To learn more about services from S.S. Nesbitt, visit http://ssnesbitt.com/.
For more information, please contact:
Courtney Read, Administrative Services Director
S.S. Nesbitt & Company ssnesbitt.com
cread@ssnesbitt.com 205-262-2628
