Employee Benefits Are a Must-Have

Retirement Planning Vital, Experts Say
November 21, 2018
Making Business Dreams a Reality
November 21, 2018
Retirement Planning Vital, Experts Say
November 21, 2018
Making Business Dreams a Reality
November 21, 2018

 

“I think businesses just need to seek or consult with true employee benefits advisors. The business has changed so much that they should truly seek someone and get advice for someone who has been in the business a long time, has the experience and has the staff to service the account. It’s all very important.”

There have been many changes to health insurance and employee benefits around the nation the last few years. Much of the legislation that dictates the market can be complicated. On top of that, the amount of paperwork and various choices of coverage can confuse anyone—employees or employer. However, it is vital that the employer provides coverage for his employees. Local expert with 22 years of experience Christian D. Lapeyre RHU of Brown & Brown Insurance talked to Bayou Business Monthly and discussed this complex market and the need for employee coverage.

“It’s all about risk management. A business owner needs to cover his risk and his employees from preventing financial ruin in case there’s an accident, some type of illness for the employee or some type of catastrophic event for the business owner,” Lapeyre said. “So having a risk manager or risk management team advisor is very important to a business owner.”


Lapeyre later continued to explain how there are basically three competitive markets insurers in Louisiana: United Healthcare, Humana and Blue Cross Blue Shield. Many in the market would like to see more competition. He foresees rates stabilizing but doesn’t see more competitors in the near future.

Another trend Lapeyre noted was the use of technology that is driving the services that companies such as Brown & Brown provide, like the innovative MDLIVE.

“Someone can be off site or …in a remote area and have a MD diagnose his condition…Let’s say you got a guy working offshore, and he’s got a bad sinus infection. Well, he can go online and talk to an actual doctor in a live situation, and he can diagnose him and possibly get him better. If it’s something of a more serious nature, they can bring him back to shore,” Lapeyre explained.


While also implementing new technologies, Brown & Brown, which is a national company but has over 50 employees in Louisiana as well as multiple branches, is also adapting to the market to create innovative solutions for their clients.

“We’re always looking for new and innovative designs and solutions to reduce costs for our clients—that’s something that’s always on the forefront,” said Lapeyre, who is the Vice President at Brown & Brown and also manages their Houma branch.

Brown & Brown is an independent insurance intermediary. They provide a wide variety of insurance products and services to corporations, public entities, professional associations and individual clients. They are also expert employee benefits advisors, as well as risk managers.


For new clients, the company goes in and analyzes their entire employee benefits package. They then look for ways to reduce their costs while also giving them better coverage. They also do the administrative work by processing claims, servicing the account and servicing the employees.

“I think businesses just need to seek or consult with true employee benefits advisors. The business has changed so much that they should truly seek someone and get advice for someone who has been in the business a long time, has the experience and has the staff to service the account. It’s all very important,” Lapeyre explained.

BY DREW MILLER