Rising healthcare costs aren’t good for workers or employers, which wind up shouldering higher costs even though employers could negotiate better prices with insurance companies, NPR and ProPublica reported.

Managing benefits for employees is tough business for employers, which is why many just cede their control to health insurers. However, harder negotiating tactics from more knowledgeable administrators can lead to big payoffs.

Employers may not even realize they are wittingly deferring to the healthcare industry to set costs without having much input. The relationship between employers’ health plans and the greater healthcare industry was put to the test when a Montana plan attempted to lower prices for employees—and call the industry’s bluff.

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