Benefits advice for companies buying, selling or merging.
Benefits rarely set the price of a deal, but they decide whether the first year after closing goes smoothly. Plans need to be reviewed before signing, kept running through the transition, and combined on a date employees can plan around. We work alongside your deal counsel and finance team so the benefits side is not the last item on the list.
Six places benefits show up in a transaction.
Benefits Diligence
Plan documents, contracts, claims and compliance history carry cost and risk that a headline price does not show. We review them before the deal closes.
Stock Purchase or Asset Purchase
The structure of the deal changes who owns the plans and who owes what to departing employees. We explain what each structure means for benefits.
Retiree and Legacy Liabilities
Retiree health promises can follow a company through a sale. We help you find them early and understand what they cost.
Plan Integration After Closing
Two carriers, two plan years and two sets of rules have to become one. We plan the sequence and the date.
Carve-Outs and Divestitures
A business leaving its parent needs its own plan, its own data and its own administration. We stand it up.
Claims Data for Buyers and Sellers
Clean claims and enrollment data supports a price and shortens a buyer’s questions. We prepare it.
Three starting points, depending on where you are.
We Are Buying a Company
Start with a diligence list for the target’s plans, then decide what you will keep, change or end.
We Are Selling Our Company
Get plan documents, compliance records and claims data in order before a buyer asks for them.
The Deal Just Closed
Map both plans, choose a combination date, and tell employees early what changes and what does not.
The questions deal teams ask us.
Plain answers for founders, finance leaders and deal counsel.
Do Benefits Affect the Price of a Deal?
Sometimes. Large retiree liabilities, underfunded self-funded plans or compliance problems can move a price, but more often benefits affect how smoothly the transition goes. Reviewing them early avoids surprises either way.
What Should Be Reviewed in Benefits Diligence?
Plan documents, carrier and administrator contracts, claims experience, compliance filings and any retiree or self-funded exposure. Our diligence checklist lists them.
What Happens to Employees’ Coverage at Closing?
It depends on the structure of the deal and what the agreement says. Coverage may continue under the seller’s plan for a period, move to the buyer’s plan or end on a set date. Employees should be told early which applies.
How Does a Stock Deal Differ From an Asset Deal for Benefits?
In a stock deal the company keeps its plans and liabilities. In an asset deal the buyer chooses what to take on. Our guide compares the two.
Who Is Responsible for Continuation Coverage After a Sale?
Responsibility depends on the deal structure and the plans involved, and the agreement often allocates it. Counsel should confirm the answer, and we make sure the benefits side is documented.
How Long Does It Take to Combine Two Benefit Plans?
Often until the next plan year, because carrier contracts and enrollment follow a calendar. Moving earlier is possible but should be a decision, not a default. See post-merger integration.
What If the Target Has a Self-Funded Plan?
Check for claims that have been incurred but not yet paid, stop-loss terms and any run-out obligations. A buyer inherits these unless the agreement says otherwise.
Can We Keep Both Plans for a While?
Yes, and it is common. It costs more to administer and can create unequal treatment between groups, so set an end date and communicate it.
What Does It Cost to Have a Broker Review Our Deal?
Talk to us about scope. Benefits diligence and integration planning are usually defined as a project, and the first conversation is free.
How Do We Get Started?
Send the plan summaries for both companies, or upload your renewal, and we will tell you what we see. There is no cost and no obligation.
Ready? Upload your renewal, or talk it through with someone first. No cost, no obligation.
General information about benefits in mergers and acquisitions, not legal or tax advice. Plan-specific questions belong with your counsel and tax advisor, and we will bring them in.
Where this connects.
Transactions and Turnarounds
The full section: deals, integration, carve-outs and turnarounds.
Private Equity-Backed Companies
Benefits for sponsor-backed employers.
Large Business Health Plans in Michigan
Plan options and cost levers for larger groups.
Send us your renewal.
We’ll tell you whether it looks competitive, where we see opportunity, and the five questions we’d put to your carrier. No cost, and no obligation to move anything.
The renewal letter
Your current plan summary
Contribution split by tier
Enrolled counts by tier
Four documents, two more if your group is 50 or more. Nothing else; every extra one is a reason to postpone.
An independent employee benefits consulting firm. We look at the entire benefits program — cost, plan performance, risk and administration.
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