On this morning's program, the hosts will be discussing the connection between health, productivity and performance in the workplace and what executives really think about employee health with two special guests from HERO, a national leader in the creation of employee health management.

According to a new survey from HERO, more than 90 percent of surveyed business leaders said health has a very significant or significant influence on productivity and performance. HERO conducted the survey to understand business leaders’ perspectives about the connection between workforce health, productivity and performance. More than 500 business leaders from across the country, representing a variety of industries and company sizes completed the online survey between May and July 2014. The HERO business leader survey evaluated not only how business leaders differentiate between commonly used terms, such as productivity and performance, but to what degree they feel employee health influences corporate priorities like employee morale and engagement and overall corporate performance.

At 11:30 a.m. (ET), the hosts will welcome Jessica Grossmeier, vice president of research, HERO, and Nikki Hudsmith, vice president of operations, Performance pH, to the show for an in-depth look into all of the findings of this new study.

Following a great week in Dallas at the first Private Exchange FORUM, hosts Doug Field and Brent Macy are back in the studio for a discussion on all things private exchanges, especially what employers need to know about this emerging solution. The hosts welcome Patty Fontneau, the president of Private Exchange Business at Cigna, to the program to join the discussion. As a prominent speaker at the recently completed Private Exchange FORUM, Patty joins the hosts in a re-cap of some of the conference's major points of discussion. Patty and the hosts focus on what employers need to know about private exchanges and also discuss the continuum of private exchange models, some pros and cons for each and where the industry is going from here.

In the last program before the inaugural Private Exchange FORUM in Dallas, hosts Brent Macy and Doug Field will welcome two guests to the program to cover all of the latest in benefits administration and private exchange technology.

The first guest on this week's program will be Kismet Toksu, president of EBenefits Solutions, an IHC Affiliate Member. In 2002, UPMC was seeking an online benefit administration solution to address its 50,000-plus employees spread over more than 50 business units at various locations. Unable to find a system to meet these needs, UPMC made significant investments in technology and expertise to build the solution in-house. The overwhelming success of this initiative for such a diverse organization fostered the creation of EBenefits Solutions in 2005. In this segment, Kismet and the hosts will discuss benefits administration trends and what's ahead for EBenefits.

For the second segment, starting at 11:30 a.m. (ET), the hosts will welcome Scott Carver, president, PlanSource, to the program to discuss the ongoing revolution in benefits administration. It's no surprise that the benefits industry is undergoing dramatic change, and it’s not really about benefits administration anymore – it’s about benefits engagement. The focus on private exchanges and their growth is one important catalyst for the change we’ve been seeing. 2015 is shaping up to be a milestone year for private exchanges with some very strong signals about how the market is viewing the importance of these technology platforms in the fast-changing health and benefits industry.

With less than two weeks until Private Exchange FORUM kicks off in Dallas, hosts Ron Bachman and Brent Macy are live in the studio for a discussion of some of the hottest trends in employer-sponsored health care, including transparency, health data, health management, private exchanges and consumer-directed benefits. 

The first guest is Joseph Berardo, CEO of MagnaCare, a leader in managing self-insured health plans in New York and New Jersey. For 25 years, MagnaCare has helped self-insured employers take control of their health care costs by providing cost-effective tools and solutions. In this interview, Joe and the hosts will discuss the benefits of transparent health data and how this data can be used to effectively control health care costs for an employee population.

For the second segment, the hosts will welcome Jody Dietel, chief compliance officer, WageWorks, to the program for a discussion on strategies for effectively navigating and utilizing private exchange solutions. Private exchanges have given employers a new level of flexibility over the design and control of the costs of their health plans, as they are managing the health and wellness of their employees.  With the various types of exchanges already operating comes a responsibility to understand the different models and the factors that make them successful – or not - for any given company. In this interview, Jody and the hosts will discuss the key differences of private exchange models and provide strategies for this rapidly evolving dynamic in the marketplace.

On this morning's program, Doug and Brent will open the show with a discussion on all of the latest happenings at The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism, including the inaugural Private Exchange FORUM later this month in Dallas; the 2015 HealthCare Consumerism Outlook magazine, publishing in early April; and what attendees can expect at the sixth annual IHC FORUM & Expo this June in Atlanta. Doug will also summarize some of the key points of conversation he gleaned as a guest to the Benefitfocus One Place conference this week in Orlando.

For the second half of the program, starting 11:30 a.m. (ET), the hosts will welcome Dennis Healy, vice president of sales at ARAG, to the show for an intensive discussion of all things legal insurance, including how these products fit with private exchanges. Employees experience a variety of legal issues every day – ranging from buying a home to estate planning and traffic tickets. Handling these issues can take time and money – impacting an employee’s life and work. In this interview, Dennis and the hosts will discuss how legal insurance can boost an employee’s health and productivity while reducing stress and look at the value ARAG legal insurance offers both employers and employees.