If you decide to implement a self-insured health plan, be aware that any employee major illness can result in a major hit — some worse than others.

According to a report in the American Journal of Medicine, these four conditions are the most likely to cause catastrophic claims for self-insured companies:

• Extreme premature births (24 to 25 weeks’ gestation) can cost $700,000 to $900,000 in hospital inpatient charges and followup outpatient treatments for mother and child.
• Liver or kidney transplants average about $760,000 in total claims.
• Non-transplant kidney disease treatments average $200,000 to $400,000 in claims.
• Hemophilia-related claims average about $300,000.

Of course, privacy laws prevent you from asking your employees if they suffer from any of the high-cost problems, and you can’t just say to workers, “Don’t get sick.” What you could do is invest in awareness programs, such as health-risk assessments,  designed to aid prevention efforts or early detection.  That investment now could save you lots of money later.