Employees want more help choosing health coverage, while HR teams face heavy workloads. ICHRA administrators can handle plan guidance and enrollment tasks.
Enrollment support affects the value employees get from health benefits
Health coverage is a major expense for private employers and a tool for attracting and keeping staff. But a difficult enrollment period can leave employees unsure about their options and weaken the value of that investment. The central problem described by the available research is a mismatch: employees want personal guidance, while HR teams often lack time to provide it.
The figures cited in the source point to pressure on both sides. Some 95% of HR leaders say their jobs bring too much work and stress, and 62% are considering leaving the profession. Meanwhile, 71% of benefits decision-makers say managing health benefits is among the hardest parts of their job. The source presents workload, rather than a lack of interest in employees, as the obstacle to better support.
Employees report gaps in guidance
Nearly half of employees—46%—say they receive no guidance during enrollment, and many don’t understand basic health plan mechanics. Younger workers are also asking for more assistance: 81% of Zillennials say HR should provide more help with enrollment. Separately, 72% of employees want benefits communications tailored to their individual needs.
Those requests matter because choosing coverage can involve unfamiliar terms, comparing plan features and understanding how a selection fits a household’s needs. When HR staff are tied up with administrative work, employees may have to make these decisions with little direction. The source argues that HR teams would use freed-up time for education and one-to-one help: 56% say they would teach employees how to make the most of their benefits, while 51% would offer more individualized support.
The reported employee outcomes also connect benefits understanding with workplace experience. Employees who understand and feel satisfied with their benefits are 1.2 times more likely to be productive, and those happy with enrollment are twice as likely to stay with their employer. These figures don’t guarantee that added support will produce the same result at every workplace, but they underline why enrollment is more than a yearly paperwork exercise.
Group coverage and CHOICE Arrangement divide the work differently
With group health insurance, the broker negotiates renewal rates with carriers, and HR and leadership review the available options and choose a plan. HR generally oversees employee communications, often using materials from the broker or carrier. Employees select from the plans the employer offers, and questions about plan details may land with HR.
CHOICE Arrangement is the source’s name for a health benefits model based on an individual coverage health reimbursement arrangement, or ICHRA. The employer sets a monthly allowance, and employees use it to buy their own insurance from an ACA or state marketplace. An ICHRA administrator can handle account tasks and provide employee assistance during onboarding and enrollment.
That changes where the work sits. Under CHOICE Arrangement, the employer decides on the allowance and contribution approach, with Take Command helping with setup and plan configuration. The administrator offers communication guidance and onboarding support; HR tells employees about the change and explains when enrollment happens. Employees shop for individual plans, and the administrator handles plan questions and helps them navigate selection and enrollment.
The distinction can be useful for HR teams: questions about the individual plan go to the administrator, while HR remains responsible for communicating the benefit and carrying out the employer’s role. The source also describes an enterprise service, Take Command Signature, that offers on-site, one-to-one enrollment support and dedicated contacts for employees, HR and brokers.
ICHRA shifts some recurring tasks to an administrator
Group coverage brings recurring renewal work. With CHOICE Arrangement, the employer doesn’t negotiate with a carrier each year; after the initial setup, the annual decision is whether to change the allowance. Because the employer sets that amount, the source says the budget doesn’t depend on carrier rates or claims history, although the employer can choose to revise it.
The administrator may also prepare plan documents, send required employee communications and handle tax reporting. The source says this can reduce HR’s day-to-day tracking of notices and deadlines. Employers still sponsor the plan and retain responsibilities of their own, so the arrangement doesn’t remove the need for HR to understand its role or coordinate with the administrator.
There is more work at the start. HR and leadership need to decide which employee classes are covered, set allowance amounts, determine what expenses can be reimbursed and choose a start date. Setting an allowance may call for reviewing workforce demographics, coverage needs, local individual-market premiums and three to five years of group renewal history. The administrator can guide the process, but leadership needs to make the plan design decisions.
Employees may also need time to adjust if they haven’t selected an individual plan or used an allowance before. The administrator can support onboarding and provide communication materials, while HR explains what is changing, the timeline and where employees can get help.
Enrollment work continues after choices are made
The two arrangements also differ once enrollment closes. Under group coverage, HR may enter employee elections and deductions, reconcile carrier bills, report employee changes, answer ongoing questions and process life events. A broker or third-party administrator may assist with requirements, but HR continues to manage several operational steps.
For CHOICE Arrangement, HR monitors participation and reports employee changes. The administrator can verify coverage, provide reimbursement reports and continue supporting employees. The source’s comparison assigns the administrator a larger role in plan selection, employee questions and follow-up, while HR keeps responsibility for employer communications and monitoring.
Those divisions should be clear before an employer selects an arrangement. A service can reduce the number of questions reaching HR only if employees know where to take them and the administrator can answer them promptly. Employers evaluating the model can ask who handles plan questions, how staff are supported when they encounter a problem, and what materials will help explain the benefit.
Questions to ask an ICHRA administrator
Employers considering CHOICE Arrangement can compare administrators by asking five practical questions:
- Who guides employees through plan selection? Ask what experience the support team has with health coverage and how employees receive help.
- Where do plan questions go? Find out how the administrator handles questions tied to coverage and what happens when an employee runs into a barrier.
- What communication materials are included? Email templates, concise explainers and other ready-to-use resources can help HR communicate the change and reduce repeat questions.
- How are plan documents and reporting handled? Ask whether the administrator manages affordability checks, proof of coverage, tax reporting and other administrative tasks described for the arrangement.
- What tools can employees use themselves? Request a demonstration of the online tools employees will use to review options and complete enrollment.
ICHRA can give employees individual plan choices and give HR a source of dedicated enrollment help, but its value depends on the setup, allowance decisions and quality of ongoing support. The source reports that ICHRA adoption among employers with 50 to 499 employees increased by an average of 113% from 2025–26. For employers weighing a change, the practical starting point is to map current enrollment tasks, identify which ones an administrator would take on, and confirm that employees will know how to get help.
