The Handbook of Employee Benefits: Health and Group Benefits 7/E, 7th Edition

PART ONEThe Environment of Employee Benefit Plans

In the United States employee benefits constitute a major component of an employee’s financial and economic security. Such benefits have gone from being considered “fringe” benefits to constituting as much as 35 percent or more of an employee’s compensation. This being the case, it is easy to see why these benefits and the plans under which they are provided are a major concern of employers and employees alike.

Individuals responsible for the design, pricing, selling, and administration of employee benefits carry a broad range of responsibilities, and the role of the benefits professional has changed rapidly and radically in the past 25 years. During that period, the number of employee benefits ...