In an Era of Uncertainty, Benefits Plan Sponsors Are Staying the Course—But with a Sharper Eye on Costs

From our position as one of the nation’s largest benefits advisors—serving employers across Texas and beyond—we’re seeing a clear shift. Supporting employees and retaining talent remain essential priorities, but the way employers approach benefits decisions is evolving.

In an environment marked by persistent inflation, rising healthcare costs, and ongoing labor and global trade volatility, companies are reviewing expenses with greater scrutiny—especially their largest line items.

That’s a key takeaway from Lockton’s 2025 National Benefits Survey. Employers continue to prioritize workforce well-being, but with a more disciplined focus on cost control than in previous years.

Survey Insights: Shifting Priorities

Lockton surveyed 1,817 plan sponsors nationwide, including 255 from Texas, representing employers across every major metro area. For the first time in six years, cost control emerged as the leading factor in benefits decision-making—surpassing employee retention, with an 8-point shift from the prior year. This insight reflects the uncertainty employers face today and marks a significant recalibration in how they balance workforce support with long-term cost management.

Key Takeaways from Texas Employers

The 2025 survey shows Texas employers broadly aligned with national trends—with several notable differences:

• 86% cite rising costs, particularly in pharmacy and specialty drugs, as their top benefits challenge—mirroring the national figure. Despite this, 53% are taking a “wait and see” approach to adopting cost-saving plan changes, even those that could improve employee outcomes.
• 71% express concern about employee disruption when making changes—slightly lower than the 80% reported nationwide.
• 54% of Texas employers operate self-funded plans, just below the 57% national average—indicating broad adoption of flexible, transparent models. Yet only 16% of self-funded sponsors report having a formal health and welfare governance committee, raising questions about whether fiduciary responsibilities are being fully met. Documenting decisions and demonstrating prudent oversight will become increasingly important in a tightening regulatory environment.

Despite continued economic pressures nationally, most employers have yet to begin implementing significant structural changes to their benefit programs to tackle rising benefits costs. Instead, many are favoring low-disruption, incremental steps—understandable given workforce sensitivities, but potentially insufficient over the long term.

The Texas Contrast

Texas employers may be in a stronger position to act. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Texas Workforce Commission, we continue to lead the nation in job creation. And we continue to lead in net migration with a younger than national average workforce.

With a favorable business climate, conservative financial planning, and access to a stable labor force, many have a broader runway to improve benefits and wellness plans without overcorrecting.

While large-scale benefit reductions remain unlikely, scrutiny is increasing.

More employers are examining cost drivers in greater detail—from pharmacy trends and dependent eligibility rules to network utilization patterns—and how these factors shape long-term financial exposure.

Final Thought: A Clear Opportunity Hiding in Plain Sight

Lockton’s 2025 National Benefits Survey shows that Texas employers are not standing still. They’re actively evaluating benefits, increasing cost oversight, and focusing on workforce health and engagement.

Two highly underutilized strategies stand out:

• Only 46% of employers offer advocacy or navigation services, leaving many employees without help in managing complex care decisions.
• Just 14% provide access to provider quality data—a simple but effective tool to help steer employees to better outcomes at lower cost.

Implementing these services doesn’t require a full plan overhaul. Still, our data show that many plan sponsors believe their employees lack a clear understanding of their benefits and how to use them effectively. These are friction-reducing, value-added enhancements that improve retention, simplify the employee experience, and generate long-term cost savings through better utilization.

Our findings also indicate that while many organizations are making strategic investments in benefits communication, there remains substantial room to improve employee understanding and drive better cost outcomes through clearer messaging, access to decision-making tools, and stronger engagement strategies.

The foundation of any sustainable strategy remains the same: take care of your people. Grounded in transparency and meaningful access to care, this approach reduces unnecessary costs, builds trust, and creates resilience through volatility.

View the full Lockton 2025 National Benefits Survey, including Texas-specific insights, here.