The Employer Healthcare Library

Your industry runs on jargon, fine print, and deadlines you find out about late. This library translates all of it. Definitions, plan types, funding math, laws, templates, vendors. Plus tools that run your numbers. All free.

109terms defined · 72 compliance requirements · Updated June 2026

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Interactive Tools

Start with your numbers, not ours.

Four tools. No login walls, no sales calls required. Each one turns your inputs into something you can put in front of leadership.

Interactive toolCompliance Calendar72 federal requirements, personalized to your group size, funding, and plan year. Deadline reports land in your inbox before the deadlines do.Start tracking →Interactive tool5-Year Benefits BlueprintProject five years of healthcare spend under your current path versus a proactive one. Real KFF data, your headcount, your funding type.See your savings →Interactive toolBenefits Control SystemTwo questions about your benefits stack. Out comes a stability score, the cost of the chaos, and a PDF scorecard you can take to leadership.Run the assessment →Ask anythingAsk BlakeA question that needs an answer now, not after a glossary session? Ask the chatbot. Trained on everything in this library.Ask a question →

The Reference Library

Everything they assume you already know.

Seven references, written for the person who signs the renewal. No vendor spin. When a definition has a catch, the catch is in the definition.

109 termsThe GlossaryEvery benefits term that shows up in your renewal meeting, defined in plain English, with the reason it matters to your budget.Look it up →77 acronymsAcronym DecoderPBM, NQTL, IBNR, MEWA. The industry speaks in capital letters so you stop asking questions. Decode all of it.Decode them →Coverage explainedPlan Types & NetworksPPO vs. HMO vs. EPO vs. HDHP. What networks really are, how deductibles flow, and what changed for 2026.Compare plan types →Funding explainedFunding ModelsFully-insured, level-funded, self-funded, captives, stop-loss. Who carries the risk, who keeps the surplus, who sees the data.Compare funding →Laws & deadlinesCompliance & LawsERISA, ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, the CAA. What each law demands from you, every annual deadline, and the 2026 numbers.Know your exposure →Copy & useTemplates & ChecklistsThe renewal timeline, 12 broker questions, PBM red flags, and letters you can copy: claims data requests, comp disclosures.Grab the templates →Know the playersThe Vendor LandscapeCarriers, TPAs, PBMs, stop-loss, captives, navigation. Who does what, how each one gets paid, and what to ask before signing.Map the market →

The 2026 Numbers

Six figures to memorize before your next benefits meeting.

Verified against IRS, HHS, KFF, and FTC publications. The full table, with sources, lives on the Compliance & Laws page.

$4,400 / $8,750

HSA contribution limit

Self-only / family, for 2026. Age 55+ can add a $1,000 catch-up contribution.

IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-19

$1,700 / $3,400

HDHP minimum deductible

Self-only / family. A plan below these deductibles is not HSA-qualified in 2026.

IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-19

$8,500 / $17,000

HDHP out-of-pocket maximum

Self-only / family. The IRS cap for HSA-qualified plans, lower than the general ACA cap.

IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-19

$10,600 / $21,200

ACA out-of-pocket maximum

Self-only / family, non-grandfathered plans. HHS revised this upward mid-2025. The originally announced $10,150 / $20,300 no longer applies.

HHS 2026 cost-sharing guidance

$3,400

Health FSA limit

Employee salary-reduction cap for 2026 plan years. Carryover max is $680.

IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32

9.96%

ACA affordability threshold

Employee-only contribution for your cheapest minimum-value plan can't exceed 9.96% of income in 2026. FPL safe harbor: $129.89/month for calendar-year plans.

IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-25