7 Questions Worth Asking Before Your Healthcare Renewal
Nonprofit leaders don't need to be insurance experts to have a powerful renewal conversation. Download our free guide with seven questions that can lead to better benefits, wiser stewardship, and more resources for your mission.
If you've ever sat through a healthcare renewal meeting and felt like you needed a degree in insurance to understand everything being presented, you're probably not alone.
Healthcare is complicated. Even experienced leaders can find themselves sorting through unfamiliar terms, rising costs, and decisions that affect both their employees and their organization's budget.
And while a good benefits broker can be an invaluable partner in navigating those decisions, there's something nonprofit leaders can bring to the table that no broker can fully provide: a clear understanding of their organization's mission, priorities, and people.
That's where some thoughtful questions can make a real difference.
Why Does a Growing Investment Deserve a Good Conversation?
According to KFF's 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey, the average annual premium for employer-sponsored family health coverage reached $26,993, an increase of 6% over the previous year. That's a significant investment for any organization, especially nonprofits working hard to make every dollar count.
Healthcare costs aren't always easy to control. Medical inflation, prescription drug spending, employee needs, and other factors all play a role. But while we may not be able to control every cost, we can become more intentional about understanding our options. And that starts with a conversation.
You don't need to be an insurance expert.
You just need to ask better questions.
Which Seven Questions Should You Explore With Your Benefits Advisor?
What's driving the changes in our healthcare costs this year?
Understanding the reasons behind a renewal increase helps everyone make more informed decisions. Ask your advisor to walk through the factors influencing your plan and which ones you might be able to address together.
Can we walk through the full cost of our healthcare program?
Beyond premiums, it's helpful to understand administrative fees, consulting costs, and other expenses associated with your benefits. A clear picture of the total investment makes it easier to evaluate the value you're receiving.
Have we explored different ways to structure our healthcare benefits?
The traditional fully insured approach works well for many organizations, but it isn't the only option. Depending on your size and needs, level-funded, self-funded, captive, or other arrangements may be worth considering. Ask your advisor which approaches might be appropriate and why.
Are there opportunities to improve how we manage prescription drug costs?
Prescription medications represent a growing part of healthcare spending. Your broker may be able to help evaluate pharmacy benefit arrangements, available discounts, and ways to improve transparency while maintaining access to important medications.
How do our benefits and costs compare with similar organizations?
Benchmarking can be a helpful way to understand whether your organization is getting good value. Comparing costs, coverage, and employee contributions with similar employers can provide useful perspective.
Are there opportunities to improve the employee experience?
A successful healthcare strategy isn't simply about lowering costs. It's also about caring well for your people. Ask whether there are ways to make benefits easier to understand, improve access to care, or reduce the financial burden on employees and their families.
If we were designing our healthcare program around our mission and values today, what might we do differently?
This is one of my favorite questions because it invites everyone to think beyond the annual renewal.
Rather than simply asking how much next year's plan will cost, it opens a conversation about what your organization is trying to accomplish and how your benefits can support that purpose.
How Can Your Broker Be a Valuable Partner in This Process?
The National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions has encouraged employers to take a more active role in understanding their healthcare arrangements and evaluating opportunities for greater transparency and value.
That's good advice, and it doesn't mean nonprofit leaders need to become healthcare experts. In fact, I believe the best results often come when organizational leaders, HR teams, financial leaders, and trusted benefits advisors work together.
Each brings something important to the conversation. Your leadership team understands your mission and financial priorities. Your HR team understands your employees. Your broker brings knowledge of the insurance marketplace and available solutions.
Together, you can make more thoughtful decisions.
Key Takeaways
The average annual premium for employer-sponsored family health coverage continues to rise year over year. (KFF).
You don't need to be an insurance expert to lead a strong renewal conversation. Your understanding of your mission, priorities, and people is what a broker can't fully provide.
Better questions can lead to better benefits, wiser stewardship, and more resources for your mission.
Is There a Simple Resource to Bring to Your Next Conversation?
At Sonvio, we spend a lot of time helping Christian nonprofits and mission-driven organizations think through these questions. We've found that sometimes the most helpful thing we can do isn't to recommend a new plan. It's to help an organization better understand the one it already has and explore what's possible.
That's why we've created a simple resource called Seven Questions to Ask Before Your Healthcare Renewal.
It's designed to help you have a productive conversation with your existing benefits advisor, leadership team, or finance committee. And if you're a broker serving nonprofit organizations, we'd love for you to use it with your clients as well. Because at the end of the day, we're all working toward something important: helping organizations care well for their people while stewarding their resources wisely.
Sometimes that starts with seven good questions.
