Stop-Loss Renews on Its Own Logic
Stop-loss is the protection that caps a self-funded employer’s exposure above an attachment point, either for one claimant or in aggregate. Its premium rose in the mid-teens for the current year, several points faster than the year before, and that pattern has held for several years running.
The reason is not a pricing decision. It is arithmetic, and it has a name: leveraged trend. The attachment point stays fixed while the claims above it keep growing, so the layer the stop-loss carrier is actually insuring expands faster than the underlying claims do. Underlying spend rising ten percent can produce a stop-loss renewal in the thirties with nothing unusual having happened to your workforce.
What to Examine on a Stop-Loss Renewal
Whether the Attachment Point Moved
and by how much, since raising it lowers the premium and hands you more risk
Any Laser Applied to a Named Claimant
which prices one individual separately and can be negotiated
The Contract Basis
which claims count by when they were incurred and when they were paid — because a change there shifts risk without changing a single number on the front page
Whether Aggregate Protection Is Included And
Whether aggregate protection is included and where that corridor sits
The Renewal Against Your Own Large
claim history rather than against the previous premium
And Watch Where the Pooling Point Sits
On an insured plan the equivalent mechanism is the pooling attachment point, and those moved up for the current year. A higher point means more of each significant claim stays inside your own experience, which will show up in next year’s renewal whether or not anything else changed. It works in both directions, which is why a decrease deserves an explanation rather than a celebration.
What Self-Funding Requires of You
The PCORI Fee, Filed on Form 720 by July 31
A per-covered-life fee filed each July for the plan year that closed
Medical Non-Discrimination Testing
which reaches level-funded arrangements as well
The Annual Return
due the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends
A Plain-Language Summary Distributed to Participants
A plain-language summary distributed to participants nine months after the year closes
Nearby markets we cover in Wayne County: Melvindale, Riverview and Flat Rock.
Stop-Loss Questions From Woodhaven Employers
Our stop-loss went up thirty percent. Did we do something wrong?
Probably not. Check the attachment point, any laser and the contract basis before accepting that it reflects your claims, because frequently it does not.
Should we raise the attachment point to hold the premium?
Only with the retained risk quantified. It is a real option and it is not a saving; it is a transfer back to you.
Stamping Plant and Retail Along the I-75 Corridor
Woodhaven is a Downriver suburb in Wayne County with 12,941 residents in the 2020 census, about 18 miles southwest of downtown Detroit. Its largest employer is Ford’s Woodhaven Stamping Plant, open since 1964, which makes body panels and chassis parts for Ford assembly plants and employed about 487 workers as of 2025. Interstate 75 runs through the center of the city, and a retail district grew up around Allen and West roads starting in the 1970s. That mix of manufacturing and retail means many local workers are hourly, while others commute along I-75 to jobs elsewhere in the region. Employers here need plans that work for both groups and hold up at renewal.
Serve Plant and Retail Workers Together
Woodhaven employers range from manufacturing suppliers to retail stores with part-time staff. We help set clear eligibility tiers, explain ACA rules for variable-hour employees, and compare plan designs that give full-time workers solid coverage without making part-time administration a burden. We also help draft plain-language summaries so employees understand when they become eligible.
Keep Payroll Deductions Affordable
For lower-wage retail and service roles, a high employee premium can push people to decline coverage. We model contribution strategies by pay band and plan tier, and check them against ACA affordability tests, so coverage stays within reach for the people you most want to keep.
Check Downriver Hospital Access
Woodhaven employees often use Downriver hospitals such as Corewell Health Trenton Hospital, along with other Metro Detroit systems. We confirm the facilities and doctors your team uses are in-network and flag any gaps before you choose a carrier or a narrower network. We also look at urgent care and telehealth options near home.
Protect Income for Physical Jobs
Stamping and supplier work is physical, and an off-the-job injury can mean weeks without pay. We compare short-term and long-term disability options, including voluntary coverage employees can buy through payroll, so income protection is available even where the employer budget is tight. We also explain how enrollment works for new hires.
Downriver Cities Within Reach of Woodhaven
- Employee benefits in Flat Rock
- Employee benefits in Trenton
- Employee benefits in Riverview
- Employee benefits in Southgate
All Downriver cities we serve · Every Michigan city we serve
Send Us Both Renewals, Medical and Stop-Loss
Send both Woodhaven renewals, medical and stop-loss, with your plan summary, per-tier contributions and enrollment and the large-claim report. Groups at fifty or above add two more documents. We will separate leveraged trend from anything specific to your group. 248.370.8853 or info@cfhic.com.
Start the Review Email info@cfhic.com Call 248.370.8853
An independent employee benefits consulting firm. We look at the entire benefits program — cost, plan performance, risk and administration.
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304
248.370.8853
Colorado Springs, CO 80921
719.425.2649
Houston, TX 77084
281.404.5670
Stop-loss up again and nobody explained why? Look at switching to CFH.
Related: how we help employers improve workforce health and control healthcare costs all year, not just at renewal.
