Leveraging extensive experience in the group benefits sector, Joseph DiBella serves as head of Conner Strong & Buckelew’s Employee Benefits Division. Speaking at the New Jersey Conference of Mayors, Joseph DiBella addressed the question Why Health Insurance Funds (HIFs)?Employing a similar risk and business model as that pioneered by Joint Insurance Funds in the property and casualty sphere, HIFs offer municipalities a shared services way to manage costs while accessing efficient benefit delivery. Participating municipalities within counties are able to band together and oversee risk aspects of operations directly, rather than having them administered through the State Health Benefits Plan.Accessible in New Jersey for more than two decades, HIFs have been adopted by more than 100 municipalities over the years. Recent developments have expanded their potential by allowing government entities such as school districts to leverage the economies of scale presented by their collective size and create HIFs as well. The bottom line is that, under the HIF model, reliance on single insurance carrier plans is lessened and a variety of features, from claims management to health and wellness capacities, are improved.
Following an extended stint as a national account manager with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, Joseph DiBella became a managing director for Conner Strong & Buckelew in Marlton, New Jersey. A wealth of experience with health and benefit plans enables Joseph DiBella to provide expert consulting services for employers around the country. He frequently shares his insights into health care and employee benefits issues as a guest speaker for the Philadelphia Business Journal.A recent report in the Philadelphia Business Journal detailed an ongoing controversy involving the oil and gas industry in Pennsylvania. Residents of West Whiteland Township have been complaining about the condition of their well water and have expressed concerns about the impact of Sunoco’s pipeline project in their community. Sunoco has paid for some of those residents to sleep in hotels while the well water problems were addressed. The dispute has also inspired one of Pennsylvania’s senators to call for Sunoco to halt the project.
Now functioning as the managing director of Conner Strong & Buckelew, Joseph Dibella leverages over 26 years of experience as an employee benefits and healthcare professional. Under Joseph Dibella’s guidance, Conner Strong & Buckelew has partnered with HR360, which offers human resources (HR) compliance services, to create an online library filled with news, forms, and HR tools.In addition to support for HR professionals, which includes content covering a range of issues from labor law guidelines and payroll practices to performance reviews and instances of discrimination, the HR360 library provides guidance for professionals on issues related to hiring new staff members such as creating job descriptions, conducting the interview process, and handling related tax concerns.Further, the HR360 library offers information about statewide HR laws covering all 50 states in America, and also contains standard forms for professionals covering audits and various employment forms as well as policy information and employee handbooks.Finally, the library offers various tools that HR professionals will find useful, such as salary benchmarking applications, and links to additional resources for further research.
Based in New Jersey, Joseph DiBella directs the Employee Benefits Division at Conner Strong & Buckelew and engages actively with clients in a benefits consulting role. Joseph DiBella works in areas such as compliance as well as health and wellness program design and implementation. One area he helps clients navigate involves the establishment of health insurance funds (HIF).With employee benefits rising rapidly and representing the second largest expense faced by New Jersey municipalities, health care solutions require a multifaceted approach. HIF models enable local school districts and local government agencies to leverage their collective size and negotiate optimal financial arrangements spanning administrators and insurance carriers. This results in benefits that are less costly and more effectively managed. As another advantage, HIF frameworks enable entities to maintain benefit plans separately, in ways that do not compromise obligations under collective bargaining agreements. The bottom line is that municipalities gain a greater ownership interest in the management of health insurance claims and benefit risks.
