HSA contribution limits to rise in 2027: The Internal Revenue Service says important numbers at the heart of personal health benefit account programs will rise by about 2% to 3% in 2027. The IRS announced the new, inflation-adjusted parameters for health savings accounts and some health reimbursement arrangements in Revenue Procedure 2026-24.  For individual contributions to HSAs, for example, the annual contribution limit will increase to $4,500, from $4,400, and the minimum deductible will increase to $1,750, from $1,700. For some types of health reimbursement arrangements, the maximum employer contribution will increase to $2,250, from $2,200. For families, the HSA contribution limit is $9,000 up from $8,750 in 2026. Source: HR Executive 6/2/26

Fertility benefits new focus of Trump administration: On May 10, the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury proposed a new rule aimed at making fertility treatments — including IVF — more accessible and affordable through employer-sponsored benefits. If finalized, the proposal would make fertility treatment a type of "limited excepted benefit," similar to standalone dental or vision plans, potentially expanding coverage and access. Right now, most fertility coverage has to be included within a company's main medical plan, which means it must comply with a long list of Affordable Care Act and HIPAA requirements. However, because fertility treatments are expensive, many employers either offer very limited coverage or none at all. By making fertility plans separate, employers could, in theory, offer fertility coverage with fewer regulatory requirements and more flexibility in how they structure it, and employees could potentially enroll in those benefits even if they don't use the employer's main health plan. "The proposed rules aren't very clear on what the implications will be yet on employers," said Sarah Peterson Herr, an HR legal expert at global HR data, analytics, and compliance company Brightmine said. "But I would call this a first step into making fertility benefits even more mainstream." Source: EBN 6/1/26

New litigation against employers – mismanaged health care benefits: A Washington federal court judge denied a motion to dismiss by Marsh & McLennan Agency in litigation over the alleged financial mismanagement of a food processing company’s health benefits plan. The judge found that Washington-based Oregon Potato sufficiently alleged Marsh acted as a fiduciary in managing the company’s health plan. The case is Oregon Potato Co. et al. v. Strong et al. Oregon Potato claims that Marsh violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by using a consulting firm, DWS Holdings LLC, to manage the company’s health plan. The company accuses the defendants, including DWS owner Darrell Strong, of charging excessive fees and mishandling health plan assets. According to Oregon Potato, Strong recommended in 2023 that the company switch from a fully insured health plan to a guaranteed level-funded premium plan. The arrangement allegedly enabled Strong to collect excessive fees and disadvantaged plan participants, who failed to receive medical benefits for the guaranteed premiums they paid. Management fees topped almost $2 million in 2023, and Strong added on $800,000 in fees in 2024. Source: Hall Benefits Law 5/27/26

Health benefits causing heartburn with smaller employers: Michigan’s small businesses continue to struggle as rising health care costs make it problematic to offer employee benefits, according to a new survey from the Small Business Association of Michigan (SBAM). SBAM’s survey found that nearly eight out of 10 small business owners report double-digit increases in employee healthcare premiums, and over 75% say the cost of healthcare limits their ability to hire new employees. “Someone must pay the increased cost of healthcare, and in Michigan, it seems small business owners are bearing the brunt of it, with double-digit cost increases,” said SBAM President and CEO Brian Calley.  “Some employers have seen an increase of as much as $2,000 per employee, per year. For a small business with 25 employees, that’s $50,000 more per year just in healthcare costs – $50,000 that could instead be used to hire another employee or invest in the business,” he added. According to the survey, 42% said that it would be one to three years before they might consider dropping coverage entirely for their employees, while 16% said it would take four years to six years; 4% said it would take seven years or more. More than 85% of those surveyed also said employee benefit costs influence their long-term planning and growth strategies. Source: SBAM 6/2/26

And for large employers: Health plans are projecting the highest medical cost trend in nearly two decades, with the commercial health care cost trend expected to rise to 9% in 2027, the highest in 17 years. This increase reflects the convergence of several powerful forces reshaping the health care landscape, according to a PWC report. "The challenge now is not simply understanding what is driving health care costs higher," the report said. "But whether health plans can deploy cost-of-care strategies quickly and effectively enough to slow the trajectory before affordability, coverage and access come under greater strain across the health care system."  Source: BenefitsPro 6/15/26

Self-insured stop loss claims increasing: Stop-loss insurance claims increased a lot more than Tokio Marine HCC expected in 2025. The underlying trend for specific claims, or claims for individual patients with very high medical bills, was 9.5 percentage points higher than the average for the period from 2019 through 2023, the company said in a new 2025 stop-loss experience analysis. Tokio Marine HCC analysts did not give the actual rate of stop-loss claim cost increases that occurred from 2019 through 2023, and company representatives were not immediately available to comment on the cost trend figures.  What it means: Quotes for 2027 stop-loss renewals could be comparable to the quotes for 2026 stop-loss renewals. The conditions leading to higher claims included cancer, conditions affecting fetuses and newborn babies, and conditions requiring transplants. Trade tariffs, cuts in Medicare Advantage plan reimbursement rates, the aging of the U.S. population, increased use of GLP-1 agonist weight-loss drugs, and a shrinking supply of medical professionals may have also contributed to rising costs at employer plans, analysts said.  Source: BenefitsPro 6/4/26