Aon Introduces Health Pricing Tool Amid Rising Costs, Heightened Fiduciary Risks

Aon PLC, a professional services firm that offers risk mitigation solutions, launched a product that provides plan sponsors with information from publicly available health care pricing data to help them manage costs and reduce fiduciary risks.

The Health Price Transparency Analysis tool taps into available data on negotiated prices between insurers and providers. The offering aims to enable employers to compare the data for a clearer picture of how the fees they are paying for health-related services compare to the universe of public data.

According to Aon, the tool allows for more seamless price comparisons by benchmarking negotiated rates across carrier networks representing 5,000 hospitals and more than 600 health systems. Employers can use the information to compare rates, assess network performance and spot discrepancies in what different providers charge for the same services.

The launch comes amid growing pressure on employers to manage their health care spending. According to Aon’s 2025 U.S. health survey, employers expect health care costs to rise 9.2% next year, up from an 8% increase in 2024. Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, plan sponsors must attest that health care plan fees are fair and reasonable. 

“As employee expectations rise and healthcare costs continue to escalate, Aon’s Health Price Transparency Analysis equips employers with the data and analysis needed to make high-impact decisions,” said Farheen Dam, Aon’s head of health solutions for North America, in a statement. “By turning overwhelming volumes of pricing data into a clear view of market dynamics and provider value, this analysis helps plan sponsors protect their organizations, optimize network performance and manage health plan spend with greater precision.”

Recent Compliance Risk

Meanwhile, concern has also increased about fiduciary risks related to health care pricing.

In March, current and former participants in the JPMorganChase health insurance plan for employees sued J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and affiliates for allegedly breaching their fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by mismanaging its prescription drug benefit under its health insurance plan.

That lawsuit followed the FTC releasing its first interim report in July 2024 and, a few months later, filing an administrative lawsuit against the “big three” pharmacy benefit managers—Caremark Rx, Express Scripts and Optum Rx—and their affiliated group purchasing organizations.

In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday, which includes measures to improve transparency into pharmacy benefit manager fee disclosures. 

Shortly after the FTC’s interim report, former Wells Fargo employees filed a lawsuit against Wells Fargo & Co., claiming the company mismanaged its health plan by allegedly causing employees to overpay for prescription drugs. In March, the case was dismissed by a U.S. district judge in Minnesota.