The Carbon Chamber & Economic Development Corporation held a "Healthcare Reform Road Map Breakfast Program" for members of local companies last week at the Blue Mountain Resort.

Presented by Equinox Agency and sponsored by UnitedHealthcare, the program's intent was to show companies tips on how to effectively manage their health care plans in a time when health care is going through major changes."There are a number of different products and philosophies out there that can prepare your business for what we see coming down the pipe in the next year," Equinox Account Executive Jared McEvoy said.McEvoy mentioned some of the leading causes of increasing health care costs, including an aging workforce, lack of proper benefit education, and poor general health.He then talked about some of the alternative strategies that businesses have been using to keep costs down, such as integrating wellness programs and implementing HSA options into employee health care plans.UnitedHealthcare had presentations prepared to tell the business owners in attendance about some of the new health care plans they have available.Lauren Pipari, account executive for UnitedHealthcare, talked about their level funding plan called All Savers. The plan is optimized for companies with 10 to 99 enrolled employees."This product launched in 2013. It started gaining momentum just last year, and from October 2014 to February, it gained 2,000 members," Pipari said.Senior key account sales executive for UnitedHealthcare Jeff Stein spoke about the two plans that the company has available for businesses with 100 employees or more.The alternate funding programs are U Funding, for companies with 100 to 500 employees, and ASO Advantage, for companies with 100 to 3,000 employees. "No matter what size company you are, we should be able to fit your needs," Stein said.He also talked about the Premium Designation Program that UnitedHealthcare provides to businesses, which is used to find what local providers are best for each individual company.Equinox Technology and Compliance Specialist Michael Rapoport gave a presentation on the importance of companies utilizing technology to make health care management easier. He suggested utilizing programs like Excel sheets to know what employees have enough hours to be eligible for certain health care plans and organizing employee wait periods with online calendars.The health care program was followed by a bonus session on team-building, given by Tricia Matsko, Blue Mountain Resort's director of marketing and sales. "We are now offering a team-building program for companies as part of our effort to make the resort a year-round destination," Matsko said.The program is meant to develop problem-solving skills and increase positive communication among office members by bringing them together for a day of outdoor activities. "We can improve the morale of your office," Matsko said.