The Challenge: No Leverage, Rising Premiums, and Employee Frustration
As a family-owned real estate management and development firm with around 55 full-time employees in multiple states across the Washington, D.C. metro area, the Brawner Company faced the same challenge as countless small businesses: no negotiating power against massive insurance carriers.
"We were a small business relying on a broker to negotiate with massive health insurance companies," Brendan Harrington, Senior Vice President at Brawner, said. The premiums never went down; they went up astronomically.”
Employees weren't happy, either. Under the traditional group plan, everyone had three options regardless of age, location, or individual needs. The result: regular complaints and, in some cases, turnover.
The Solution: Venteur's ICHRA Approach
Venteur's Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA) offered Brawner Company exactly what it needed:
- One bill, one vendor. No juggling invoices from dozens of insurers
- Age-banded, region-based options. Employees across Washington D.C., Virginia, and Maryland could each find plans that fit
- No new systems to learn. Payroll deductions work the same as before
- Real choice for employees. Instead of three take-it-or-leave-it options, employees can shop for coverage matching their needs and budget
“I found that going the ICHRA route is more affordable for the employer and the employee," said Harrington.
The Result: Zero Complaints, Higher Participation, Easier Renewals
The impact was immediate. In Brawner Company’s first year using an ICHRA:
- Employer costs dropped approximately 10%
- More employees enrolled. Participation increased as previously uninsured staff joined the plan
- Zero complaints about health insurance for the first time in nearly a decade
- No turnover due to benefits, a problem the company had faced under its old group plan
- Renewal took two hours, down from weeks of back-and-forth with brokers
