Brian Uhlig
The Validation Institute 2023 Advisor of the Year, Brian Uhlig has been a dedicated professional in the benefits consulting industry for over 25 years. As a Senior Partner at Alera Group, Brian brings a wealth of experience and a relentless commitment to improving the lives of employees through innovative and sustainable healthcare solutions.
For the first 15 years of his career, Brian excelled in what was considered the traditional approach to benefits consulting—partnering closely with insurance carriers, pharmacy managers, and other industry stakeholders to deliver programs such as HSAs, HMOs, and PPOs. However, a pivotal moment early in his career reshaped his perspective.
While presenting what he believed to be a successful benefits strategy to employees at a manufacturing plant in Tennessee, he was approached by an employee. The employee pulled him aside and basically said, "how am I going to afford a $5,000 deductible for my family on $23 an hour?" And at that point in time, "it was pretty clear to me that I was doing the consulting business all wrong," Brian says.
Determined to make a meaningful difference, Brian shifted his focus from serving the interests of insurance carriers to advocating for employees—the people at the heart of his clients' organizations. This transformation led Brian to join Health Rosetta, a forward-thinking organization dedicated to reshaping the healthcare ecosystem. Health Rosetta fosters collaboration among employers, care advocates, clinicians, and consultants to prioritize the best interests of employees and clients over those of insurance companies.
Brian brings an integral part of the Pathway to Zero team and leads our Benefit Plan Design process. His team at Alera Group is focused in larger, complex, self-funded employers of all backgrounds. Each plan designed factors in the organization's culture, financial situation, desire to recruit and retain, and overall benefits strategy.
Recently, Over a seven-year period, Brian worked with nine clients representing a total of 25,000 employees, achieving an impressive average annual cost increase of just 2%, significantly lower than the industry average of over 6%. This difference translated into more than $305 million in savings over that time. Instead of being absorbed by the healthcare system, these funds were retained by the organizations, allowing them to reinvest in other critical priorities and initiatives. This level of success underscores the value of adopting a fundamentally different and more strategic approach to managing healthcare costs.
