Markus Andrews

South Fork Wind, 35 miles East of Montauk, New York, is the first commercial-scale offshore wind project in the U.S.
Orsted built the wind farm, which has 12 turbines that can power 70,000 homes annually.
The Biden administration has a target of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2030, but rising interest rates and supply chain hurdles have hit the industry.

Pippa Stevens | CNBC

GREENPORT, N.Y. – Roughly 35 miles off the east coast of Montauk, New York, 12 turbines gently spin in the wind at Orsted’s newly developed South Fork Wind farm. The project, which connected to the grid earlier this year, is the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S., providing enough power for 70,000 homes annually.
It’s a needed bright spot for the U.S. offshore wind industry, which has faced a number of challenges getting off the ground. Rising interest rates and supply chain snags have changed project economics, forcing some developers to return to the market in search of higher contracted prices. Other projects have been canceled entirely.

Soren Lassen, head of offshore wind research at Wood Mackenzie, said the U.S. offshore wind industry is going through a needed readjustment, and that while the long-term outlook remains intact, progress has been pushed out. South Fork Wind offers tangible evidence that wind projects can work.

A long-term investment

Traveling by way of a high-speed ferry from Greenport, New York, it takes about two hours to get to South Fork Wind. It’s hard to get a sense of just how large these turbines are until you’re right under one: they tower 460 feet above the water, with blades that are each longer than a football field. And that’s just what the eye can see. Underwater, each tower sits atop a custom foundation drilled into the seabed. Apart from the gentle “swoosh” of the blades – only audible when right next to the turbine – the wind farm is otherwise quiet in the middle of the ocean.

South Fork Wind’s substation, which is connected to the power grid in East Hampton via a subsea and then underground cable.
Pippa Stevens | CNBC

Each turbine is connected to an offshore substation – the first of its kind built in the U.S. – which is connected to the local power grid in East Hampton, New York, via a 65-mile subsea and underground cable.
South Fork Wind was not without opposition. The waters off the Long Island coast have long been a place for recreational and commercial fisherman alike, some of whom opposed the project. Residents in Wainscott – the summer community where the cable comes ashore – also fought it. This led to Orsted adding extra space between each turbine so that the area remains open both to transit by pleasure and fishing boats, and the company buried the onshore cable beneath the beach and local roads.
Denmark-based Orsted is not new to the area. The company developed the five-turbine Block Island Wind Farm, which is northwest of South Fork Wind, in 2016. And northeast of South Fork Wind sits Revolution Wind – a 65-turbine project that Orsted broke ground on in 2023. In July, Orsted began construction on Sunrise Wind, which is also in federal waters off the New York coast.

Offshore wind projects are long-term investments, with work starting years before a single foundation is even drilled into the seabed. Securing the necessary permits is a lengthy process.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management first awarded the leases for South Fork Wind in 2013, which where acquired by Deepwater Wind. Orsted acquired the company in 2018 and partnered with Eversource Energy to start building the project. Onshore construction began in February 2022, with offshore construction following in 2023. In September, Skyborn Renewables, a Global Infrastructure Partners portfolio company, acquired Eversource’s 50% stake in both South Fork Wind and Revolution Wind.  

South Fork Wind, which is 35 miles East of Montauk, New York.
Pippa Stevens | CNBC

Offshore wind developers typically use power purchase agreements, which are signed ahead of construction. Put simply, it’s a long-term agreement between the owner and a third party who agrees to pay a specific price for the power – oftentimes for 20 years or more. At South Fork Wind, the power is being sold to Long Island Power Authority.
While this model provides long-term certainty, it can also be a huge obstacle if project costs balloon. Orsted is developing Revolution Wind and Sunrise Wind, but last year it walked away from Ocean Wind 1 and 2, which were slated to be built off the coast of Atlantic City, New Jersey.
“Macroeconomic factors have changed dramatically over a short period of time, with high inflation, rising interest rates, and supply chain bottlenecks impacting our long-term capital investments,” David Hardy, CEO Americas at Ørsted, said in October 2023. “As a result, we have no choice but to cease development of Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2.”
In May, Orsted agreed to pay New Jersey a $125 million settlement.
The financial problems are not unique to Orsted. Equinor and BP ended a joint venture to develop a project in waters off the coast of New York in January. Equinor took sole ownership of the project and re-entered the market in search of better prices – securing a deal for Empire Wind 1, but not for Empire Wind 2, which remains on pause.

High rates, supply chain struggles

The two main obstacles around building offshore wind farms are interest rates and the supply chain. Offshore wind is capital intensive: it takes a lot of money to build one of these projects in the middle of the sea, and as interest rates rose companies’ cost of capital surged. At the same time, raw material and labor costs accelerated out of the pandemic. It’s hard to begin construction without a PPA locked in, but if costs rise significantly above initial estimates, the PPA might not be high enough for the project to be feasible.

Arrows pointing outwards

Each turbine at South Fork Wind rises 460 feet above the water.
Pippa Stevens | CNBC

Much of the supply chain is also highly specialized. There are only a few vessels in the world, for example, that can lay the underwater cables. Turbine installation vessels are also industry-specific. The offshore wind industry is not new globally, but it is in the U.S., meaning just a few years ago a domestic supply chain was virtually nonexistent.
But some of those supply chain constraints are beginning to ease as more and more projects get off the ground. Dominion Energy is building the first Jones Act-compliant turbine installation ship in Brownsville, Texas, which will be used to transport supplies to its Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project. Once the project is completed, the ship will be contracted out to other companies.

‘Not disappearing’

Offshore wind port hubs are also popping up, including the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, the Port of Virginia and Connecticut’s Port of New London. Orsted’s domestic supply chain now spans more than 40 states, and work for South Fork Wind took place in New York, South Carolina, Texas, Rhode Island and Connecticut, among other states.
The U.S. Department of the Interior recently approved its tenth offshore wind project – this one in Maryland – in what it called a “major milestone.” But the Biden administration’s goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by the end of this decade remains far off.

Arrows pointing outwards

South Fork Wind’s offshore substation is the first-of-its-kind built in the U.S.
Pippa Stevens | CNBC

Vineyard Wind, off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, Massachusetts, is the only other commercial-scale offshore wind project currently powering homes. Developer Avangrid had to pause construction over the summer after a blade broke off and fell into the ocean, with parts ultimately washing ashore on Nantucket beaches. GE Vernova, which made the blade, called it a “manufacturing deviation” related to “insufficient bonding” in the blade.
Two other projects – Block Island Wind Farm and Dominion’s two-turbine Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Pilot Project – are operational, although they are much smaller, powering 17,000 and 3,000 homes, respectively.
The U.S. does have 58 gigawatts of capacity under development, according to American Clean Power, but some of those projects won’t come online for years, and there is no guarantee all of them will be built. The industry group estimates that $65 billion will be invested in offshore wind by 2030, supporting 56,000 jobs – up from 1,000 today.
“There are cycles in everything, and now we’re going through a negative cycle,” said Wood Mackenzie’s Lassen, in an interview. “That means that what is now driving the adjustments to price are, instead of success, failures.”
But Lassen is encouraged projects are pushing forward.
“The positive thing is that then there is some readjustment,” he said. “That means the sector is not disappearing. It’s bouncing back, but it is different.”

Arrows pointing outwards

Orsted’s Block Island Wind Farm. The turbines are supported by jacket foundations, rather than the monopiles used at South Fork Wind.
Pippa Stevens | CNBC

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As 2025 approaches, top-ranked advisors are bracing for a looming tax cliff when trillions of dollars in tax breaks enacted by former President Donald Trump are scheduled to expire.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act included several key individual tax law changes that could sunset after 2025, including lower tax brackets, higher standard deductions and a bigger estate and gift tax exemption.
Meanwhile, advisors are focused on estate planning strategies and tax moves such as accelerating income and deferring deductions.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump attends a rally at the site of the July assassination attempt against him, in Butler, Pennsylvania, Oct. 5, 2024.
Brian Snyder | Reuters

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It’s unclear which TCJA provisions, if any, could be extended by Congress, particularly with uncertain control of the Senate, House and the White House. 
In the meantime, some financial advisors have started tax planning for clients who could be affected. Here are some of their key strategies.

Estate planning is a ‘large focus’

Currently, there’s a significantly higher estate and gift tax exemption under the TCJA, which allows tax-free transfers from wealthy Americans to the next generation.
In 2024, the lifetime estate and gift tax exemption is $13.61 million for individuals or $27.22 million for married couples. Next year, that limit will adjust for inflation before dropping by roughly one-half after 2025 if Congress does not extend the provision.

Transfers above those thresholds could be subject to a maximum tax rate of 40%.
“That’s really been a large focus for us,” said certified financial planner Peter Traphagen Jr., managing director of Traphagen Financial Group in Oradell, New Jersey, which ranked No. 9 on CNBC’s 2024 FA 100 list.

Estate planning strategies leverage the exemptions to remove assets from the estate during life. However, techniques vary by family depending on their level of wealth, goals, life expectancy and other factors. 
Plans can involve trusts, gifts to beneficiaries, direct payments to education institutions or medical providers, funding a 529 college savings plan and other tactics, said Shea Abernethy, an investment advisor representative based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
“Once it’s out of your estate, it’s not gaining interest or compounding,” said Abernethy, who is also chief compliance officer for Salem Investment Counselors, which earned the No. 8 spot on the FA 100 list.  

‘Accelerate income’ before tax hikes

Some advisors are also planning for higher federal income tax brackets after 2025.
Without changes from Congress, the brackets will revert to 2017 levels, shifting to 10%, 15%, 25%, 28%, 33%, 35% and 39.6%.
“We are looking at strategies to accelerate income into the lower brackets now,” said Samantha Pahlow, wealth management chair of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management in Portland, Oregon. The firm ranked No. 10 on the FA 100 list. 
For example, that could include making Roth individual retirement account conversions or recognizing business income sooner, she said.

Pass-through businesses such as sole proprietors, partnerships or S corporations may also want to accelerate income to leverage the 20% qualified business income deduction, which could also sunset after 2025, Traphagen said.

Consider ‘deferring deductions’

At tax time, filers claim the standard deduction or their total itemized deductions, whichever is greater. After 2025, they’re more likely to itemize, if the standard deduction is cut in half.
For 2024, the standard deduction is $14,600 for single taxpayers and $29,200 for married couples filing jointly. That means most filers won’t claim itemized tax breaks such as the deduction for charitable gifts, medical expenses, and state and local taxes, experts say.
But with a lower standard deduction scheduled for 2026, you may consider “deferring deductions,” such as a donation to charity, Pahlow said. More

Hispanic- and Latino-identifying consumers accounted for 32.5% of Constellation Brands’ sales in 2023, data from Numerator and Jefferies shows.
Continued loyalty from these shoppers is partly responsible for Modelo hanging onto its spot as the most-bought U.S. beer by dollar share.
“Hispanic consumers are the single most important consumer group for our beer business,” said Mallika Monteiro, executive vice president at Constellation Brands.

Packages of Modelo Especial beer are displayed for sale in a grocery store on June 14, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. 
Mario Tama | Getty Images

Modelo cans have become part of the fabric of events for Rio Riojas’ family and community in Lansing, Michigan.
The 35-year-old often finds himself opting for the brand at grocery stores or bars. The beer has become, in his words, “synonymous” with gatherings, ranging from small hangouts to birthday parties.

“It’s definitely the choice of the people,” said Riojas, a stand-up comedian. “When you’re at a quinceañera and you see everybody you know enjoying a couple beers at the table, it’s usually going to be a Modelo.” 
Riojas is part of a base of Hispanic consumers that has become a focal point for Constellation Brands’ beer business, which also includes products such as Corona and Pacífico. What the company describes as an authentic relationship with this cohort of shoppers has boosted demand — and is part of why Modelo has become the best-selling beer brand in the U.S.
Recent data illustrates how Constellation has pulled ahead in the broader market by homing in on Latinos.
Hispanic- and Latino-identifying customers accounted for 32.5% of Constellation Brands’ sales in 2023, according to data from consumer research firm Numerator and investment bank Jefferies. This is despite the group comprising just 19.5% of the American population that year, as government statistics show.

Continued loyalty from these shoppers is partly responsible for Modelo hanging onto its spot as the most-bought U.S. beer by dollar share, the company said. Modelo was first able to eclipse Bud Light last year as the Anheuser-Busch-owned brand faced backlash following its marketing campaign that featured a transgender influencer.

“Hispanic consumers are the single most important consumer group for our beer business,” said Mallika Monteiro, executive vice president and managing director for Constellation’s beer brands. “It has been the foundation of how we’ve been able to drive growth over the last 14 years.”

The ‘fighting spirit’

Constellation’s connection to these brands started with importing them to the U.S. from Mexico. The company officially acquired the U.S. beer business of Groupo Modelo, which included Modelo and Corona, from Anheuser-Busch in 2013.
These brands have a natural pull among Hispanics given their roots in America’s southern neighbor, said Alexandra Aguirre-Rodriguez, an associate professor at Florida International University’s business school. But Constellation’s marketing and social responsibility efforts have helped the New York-based company maintain this relationship over time, she said.
Constellation’s Monteiro said the emphasis on the Hispanic community has taken root in the company’s focus on building a diverse workforce. The company also touts a multiyear donor relationship with UnidosUS, which is billed as the largest civil rights organization focused on Hispanics in America.
With the rights to market in the U.S., Monteiro said Constellation has focused on an “authentic” reflection of these brands as Mexican imports. After several years of advertising in Spanish-language programming, she said the company in more recent years brought its Modelo marketing campaigns to English-speaking media.
One popular spot focused on the role of “abuelas,” or grandmothers, in caring for and feeding their families. An ad released this year highlighted the work of California women who build low-rider cars.

Modelo’s “fighting spirit” tagline offers positive representation in media for Hispanics specifically, said FIU’s Aguirre-Rodriguez, whose research centers on the intersection of identity and branding. It can also resonate more broadly with immigrants coming to America in search of a better life, or their descendants — regardless of their origin country, she said.
“Time and time again, you see that there’s that strong bond that consumers form emotionally with brands,” Aguirre-Rodriguez said. “The self is a very important part of consumers’ decision-making.”

‘A good mark of the culture’

This connection can help Constellation weather a tough economic backdrop that’s been defined by a “choosy” consumer, according to Jefferies analyst Kaumil Gajrawala.
Gajrawala said one might expect Constellation to face trouble as consumers face economic challenges such as inflation and high interest rates. But he said the company is in a better spot than others in a similar position.
That’s because the Hispanic base is likely to reduce spending elsewhere in order to keep picking up boxes of Modelo or Corona, given their loyalty, he said.
“The business is more resilient than it may appear,” he told clients in June.

Read more CNBC analysis on culture and the economy

Constellation hasn’t been completely immune from economic headwinds. CEO William Newlands said on the company’s earnings call earlier this month that an uptick in Hispanic unemployment can help explain softness seen during the second quarter.
Potential tariffs on imports are another overhang for the company heading into the presidential election. But Tom Fullerton, a professor at the University of Texas at El Paso focused on trade in the Americas, said consumers should continue to shell out under these circumstances, though they would likely see price increases as a result.
Constellation is one of multiple companies vying for the attention of Hispanics as their financial power becomes more apparent. A study released last month found that if U.S. Latinos were an independent country, they would have the fifth-largest gross domestic product and the second-fastest-growing economy.
Looking ahead, Constellation is expecting a rebound in Hispanic employment that should bode well for spending. On the business end, Monteiro said the company is expanding into flavors that particularly resonate with this group, such as the Modelo Agua Fresca line she said is inspired by drinks at Mexican street markets.
At a recent gathering of Riojas’ family, a decked-out tray included cans of Modelo adorned with finger foods and shrimp. Attendees could use those items to make a “Michelada,” a cocktail that typically mixes the Mexican beer with juice and toppings.

A Michelada tray.
Courtesy: Rio Riojas

For Riojas, a box of Modelo has also become a staple gift when going to events. He said the company’s commitment to uplifting Hispanic heritage has struck a chord within his community. 
“It was awesome to see us represented,” he said. “It’s definitely a good mark of the culture and a good representation of our ‘fighting spirit.'” More

The Social Security Administration on Oct. 10 announced a higher threshold for earnings subject to Social Security payroll taxes.
For 2025, the “taxable maximum” will be $176,100, up about 4.4% from $168,600 in 2024.
The Social Security tax rate is 12.4%, with workers paying 6.2% and employers paying the other 6.2%. The government also collects 2.9% in Medicare taxes, which doesn’t have a cap on earnings.

Hispanolistic | E+ | Getty Images

How the Social Security tax calculation works

The Social Security payroll tax rate is 12.4%, with workers paying 6.2% through paycheck deductions. Employers pay the other 6.2%.

For 2025, workers will pay 6.2% on earnings up to $176,100, for a maximum of $10,918.20, according to the Social Security Administration. Once workers reach that max, they don’t pay into the program for the rest of the year.
The 2025 adjustment has a bigger impact on self-employed workers because “they’re paying both sides of it,” meaning they owe the full 12.4%, according to Lovison, who is also a certified public accountant.

The government also collects 2.9% in Medicare payroll taxes, with workers and employers each paying 1.45%. But there is no cap on taxable earnings for Medicare.
Self-employed workers are also responsible for both sides of the Medicare tax, for a combined 15.3% between Social Security and Medicare. However, they can deduct 50% of self-employment taxes on their individual return, even if they don’t itemize.

Concerns over Social Security solvency 

The latest Social Security adjustments come amid growing concerns about the program’s solvency. The trust funds used to pay benefits are expected to run out in 2035, the trustees’ report showed in May.
In the meantime, some advocates have pushed to increase the Social Security wage base to provide more funding.
The Social Security Administration’s 2024 trustees’ report details more than 150 options to close the funding gap, including ways to cut benefits and boost revenue.
“Clearly, the biggest financial gain comes from eliminating the taxable maximum,” Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College wrote about the report in August.
However, future changes are unclear with control over Congress and the White House uncertain. More

Investors are facing delays to transfer certain assets purchased via TreasuryDirect, a platform run by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.  
However, investors can avoid liquidity issues by purchasing Treasurys via a brokerage account.

Peopleimages | Istock | Getty Images

As investors revisit bonds amid falling interest rates, some are encountering longer waits to transfer certain assets purchased via TreasuryDirect, a platform run by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.  
TreasuryDirect, which sells government-backed assets, experienced a surge in demand in recent years as investors flooded into Series I bonds that offered record-high yields amid elevated inflation.

Now, other assets, such as Treasurys, are taking longer to transfer from TreasuryDirect to brokerage accounts. In some cases, the wait could be up to 12 months, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
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But the Treasury said wait times are improving.
“We recognize that the retail program has processing delays due to resource and technology constraints,” a spokesperson from the Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service told CNBC. 
When asked about wait times, the spokesperson said that it “depends more on complexity than capacity” and that processing times are “well under one year right now and declining daily.”

“The website’s processing timeframes are meant to give the longest potential times for the complex, difficult cases — these processing times are often much shorter and continue to decrease as we dedicate more resources,” they said. 
The agency aims to “modernize the retail program in the future” and is designing solutions “with the customer in mind,” the spokesperson said.  

The benefits of using a brokerage account

In addition to savings bonds such as I bonds, TreasuryDirect offers “marketable securities,” including Treasury bills, Treasury bonds, Treasury inflation-protected securities and floating rate notes.
Investors must hold these assets for 45 days before they can sell or transfer them, which makes the platform less attractive for investors needing flexibility, experts say.
“It’s not a good idea to buy anything from TreasuryDirect that you might need to sell,” said David Enna, founder of Tipswatch.com, a website that tracks Treasury inflation-protected securities, or TIPS, and I bond rates. 

It’s not a good idea to buy anything from TreasuryDirect that you might need to sell.

David Enna
Founder of Tipswatch.com

Transferring assets from TreasuryDirect to a brokerage account includes a multiple-step process, including a form with a signature from an “authorized certifying official at a financial institution,” according to the website.
Some advisors recommend buying Treasury assets in a brokerage account to bypass potential liquidity issues.
“The accessibility and the ease of these exchanges is so much better than the hoops you’ve got to jump through with the Treasury,” said certified financial planner George Gagliardi, founder of Coromandel Wealth Management in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Investors pay fees to buy Treasurys in a brokerage account. But with low-fee options, like exchange-traded funds, the cost is minimal for smaller investments, Gagliardi said.

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Women in their 30s and 40s make up about 46% of total employment, slightly lower than those in their early 20s, according to an analysis by the Federal Reserve.
Despite making major strides in the workplace, as women approach their 40s, caretaking responsibilities continue to drag down labor force participation.

Women in their mid-30s to mid-40s make up about 46% of total employment, which means they are slightly less likely to work than men that age, according to a recent analysis by the Federal Reserve. Their employment rate is also slightly lower than women in their early 20s.
“This smaller share reflects the fact that, within marriages, mothers are still more likely than fathers to specialize in child care,” the Fed noted.

Despite making major strides in the workplace, as women approach their 40s, they are still more likely to take time out of the labor force or reduce the number of hours worked because of caretaking responsibilities, according to the Pew Research Center.
This also results in fewer opportunities for advancement and lower pay — often referred to as the “motherhood penalty.”

Women are achieving increasing levels of education and working as much, if not more, than their male counterparts, at least until they reach an age when they often get married or have children — a dynamic that has proved remarkably stubborn.
“Women are more likely to exit the labor force either permanently or for a couple of years to take care of children,” Kelly Shue, a professor of finance at Yale School of Management, said at CNBC’s Women & Wealth event in September.
Today, 26% of mothers are stay-at-home parents, compared with just 7% of fathers, according to a separate Pew study from August.

Mothers working full time and year-round outside the home rarely recoup the lost wages, which add up to $20,000 a year, on average. Working moms are making just 71 cents for every dollar paid to fathers, according to an analysis of Census data by the National Women’s Law Center. 
And they still shoulder the brunt of the responsibilities at home, many studies also show.

Even in cases where women are now breadwinners, the division of labor at home has barely budged, according to another 2023 Pew Research Center survey. 
As women’s financial contributions increased, they continued to pick up a heavier load when it comes to household chores and caregiving responsibilities, the Pew report found.
“It is the case today, regardless of how much a woman is contributing economically, she is doing more tasks around the home,” said Richard Fry, a senior researcher at Pew.
In fact, in some cases, their responsibility for child care and domestic tasks is only increasing.
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Four in 10 women with partners say they are responsible for most or all of the household work, a number that has grown since 2016, according to the annual Women in the Workplace study from Lean In and McKinsey.
This year, half of women who live with a partner and have children at home bear the most responsibility for child care — up from 46% last year, Deloitte’s most recent Women at Work report also found.
At the same time, 37% of women said they feel like they have to prioritize their partner’s career over their own — another increase from 2023 — in part because their partner earns more but also due to societal or cultural expectations.

However, in at least some marriages or partnerships, couples are reevaluating ideas about work and family and striking a balance between the two.
Recently, it’s actually men who are choosing to scale back at work, particularly high earners with higher levels of education, according to a 2023 working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
“The pandemic may have motivated people to re-evaluate their life priorities and also gotten them accustomed to more flexible work arrangements (e.g., work from home), leading them to choose to work fewer hours, especially if they can afford it,” the researchers wrote.

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About 165 million Americans rely on employer-sponsored health insurance, and yet workers may still not get the coverage they want — particularly when it comes to drugs such as Wegovy and Ozempic.
Currently, less than half of employers cover the expensive weight-loss medications.
Even those that do cover them have guardrails in place that restrict access.

About 165 million Americans rely on employer-sponsored health insurance, and yet workers may still not get the coverage they want — particularly when it comes to drugs such as Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic.
About 1 in 3 employees are looking for more resources to combat obesity, according to a recent report by consulting firm Gallagher. Glucagon-like peptide-1 treatments such as Wegovy and Ozempic, which mimic hormones produced in the gut to suppress a person’s appetite, are considered game changers on this front.

These blockbuster weight-loss drugs have skyrocketed in popularity in the U.S. but are still not universally covered — even though “Americans have higher rates of obesity and diabetes and more behavioral health conditions today than ever before,” according to Trilliant Health’s “2024 Trends Shaping the Health Economy” report.
Cost is a key issue.
Although research shows that obesity drugs may have significant health benefits beyond shedding unwanted pounds, organizations representing U.S. insurers have said concerns remain about the high price involved in covering those medications, which are nearly $1,350 per month for a single patient. 
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The price tag for GLP-1 medications, along with the large number of workers who could potentially benefit from using them, are a big driver of higher health-care costs, several studies show. Already, prescription drug costs jumped 8.6% last year, due in part to a surge in the use of GLP-1 drugs, according to a recent report by Mercer.

“Is that significant? Yes,” said Sunit Patel, Mercer’s U.S. chief health actuary.
Patients on these medications need to complete months, if not years, of continuous treatment.
“It becomes a lifelong drug,” said Gary Kushner, chair and president of Kushner & Company, a benefits design and management company. “That’s a pretty expensive commitment.”

Cost is a key factor in coverage

Currently, fewer than half — 42% — of companies cover the expensive weight-loss drugs to some extent. Another 27% are considering adding coverage in the year ahead, according to the survey by Mercer.
Still, “not everyone who wants it can get it,” Patel said.
On the flip side, 3% of employers have recently removed coverage for these drugs and 10% of companies that currently cover them are considering removing them for 2025.  
To improve access to weight-loss drugs, many businesses would have to pay even more — and health-care costs are already reaching a post-pandemic high, with employers and employees set to shell out significantly more for coverage in 2025, according to WTW, a consulting firm formerly known as Willis Towers Watson. U.S. employers project their health-care costs will increase by 7.7% in 2025, compared with 6.9% in 2024 and 6.5% in 2023.
Among employers’ greatest concerns was how to cover increasingly sought-after weight loss drugs, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey also found.
“Employers face the challenge of integrating these potentially important treatments into their already costly benefit plans,” Gary Claxton, KFF’s vice president said in a press statement.

Packages of weight loss drugs Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro.
Picture Alliance | Getty Images

Access for weight-loss use is an issue

For now, some employers cover only GLP-1 drugs exclusively for the treatment of diabetes, while others cover certain GLP-1s for weight loss but only if they are approved by the Food and Drug Administration for that use — ruling out Ozempic, which is just FDA-approved for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.
“Most employers cover Ozempic for diabetes, they don’t necessarily cover it as an anti-obesity medication,” said Seth Friedman, pharmacy and health plans practice leader at Gallagher.
That makes it even trickier for employees to navigate whether they can get access to the drug and if it will be covered by their insurance. “They see that it’s covered but they get rejected,” Friedman said.
A 2023 survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans found that 76% of the companies polled provided GLP-1 drug coverage for diabetes, versus only 27% that provided coverage for weight loss — leaving many workers shut out.
“Obviously, there is demand for them, and it’s not for diabetes, it’s for weight loss,” said Kushner.

“Looking ahead to 2025, about half of large employers will cover the drugs for weight loss,” said Beth Umland, Mercer’s research director of health and benefits. However, “even when they do, there are guardrails around who can use it.”
Demand for these treatments is only expected to increase — but the added controls for coverage are also helping to keep costs in check.
Nearly all employers have some sort of “utilization management” restrictions in place, such as a prior authorization requirement, according to Gallagher’s Friedman.
For some companies, that may mean workers must try other weight-loss methods first or meet with a dietitian and enroll in a weight-loss management program. Others may require a threshold for body mass index, or BMI, of at least 30, depending on how the plan is set up, Friedman said.
This information is available during open enrollment, which typically runs through early December. 
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So-called “loss of use coverage” or “additional living expenses” coverage can help homeowners and renters cover living expenses like temporary housing after a natural disaster.
“I don’t know of any homeowners policy that doesn’t have it already there,” said Karl Susman, president and principal insurance agent of Susman Insurance Services, Inc. in Los Angeles. 

Mobile homes surrounded by flood water after Hurricane Milton made landfall, in St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S. October 10, 2024.
Octavio Jones | Reuters

If your home is temporarily uninhabitable after a natural disaster, a provision in your homeowners or renters insurance policy may help you with new lodging and other living expenses.
Insured wind and flood damage from Hurricane Helene is estimated to be up to $17.5 billion, according to CoreLogic, a real estate data site. Insured losses from Hurricane Milton could range from $30 billion to $60 billion, per Morningstar DBRS.

Homeowners and renters affected by a natural disaster can ask about so-called “loss of use” or “additional living expenses” coverage from their insurance providers, experts say.
The provision is meant to help cover reasonable living expenses if your home is not suitable to live in as a result of a covered peril such as a hurricane, fire or burst pipe.
“I don’t know of any homeowners policy that doesn’t have it already there,” said Karl Susman, president and principal insurance agent of Susman Insurance Services, Inc. in Los Angeles. 
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As you file a claim, it will be important to ask your insurance company about the loss of use coverage and how quickly can it kick in, said Shannon Martin, a licensed insurance agent and analyst at Bankrate.com.

“If you call your carrier, they might be able to expedite the loss of use claim filing for you and issue a check early so that you’re not stuck trying to figure out how to pay for separate housing,” she said.
Here’s what the coverage is and what to consider before you use it, according to experts.

How loss of use coverage works

Loss of use coverage is a provision that is typically included in your homeowners insurance policy. It’s usually about 20% of the dwelling coverage and is paid out in the event that the home becomes uninhabitable and a policyholder needs funds for living expenses while the home is repaired or rebuilt, experts say. Eligible expenses might include a hotel or rental home, food, pet boarding or storage fees, among others.
For example, if you’re ensuring a house for $100,000, and that’s what it costs to rebuild the house, that is considered the dwelling coverage, Susman said.
“Then the policy would automatically come with $20,000 in coverage for loss of use,” he said.

“That way you and your family can pay for your hotel and pay for food, because you might be separated from your home for an extended period of time,” Martin said.
Renters insurance typically has a similar provision, as would condominium policies, Susman said.
For renters and condo insurance, the primary coverage is not dwelling because you’re insuring personal property rather than the building, he said. You’ll typically get 20% of the personal property coverage for loss of use, he said.
Ask your insurer about any policy restrictions. There may be expense-specific dollar caps or time limits to claim loss of use coverage.

‘It’s not intended to be a long-term solution’

Loss of use coverage can help homeowners cover living expenses after a natural disaster. However, the money is meant to be a short-term solution, not a long-term fix, experts say.
“It’s generally not intended to be a long-term solution,” said Jeremy Porter, head of climate implications research at First Street Foundation, an organization focused on climate risk financial modeling in New York City. “It’s generally not enough money to carry people through an extended period of time.” 
That can be a problem because what it would cost to move out would be very different after a major disaster than during more typical times, Susman said, as there’s often less housing available and hotels may raise their prices amid demand.

While the coverage is meant to be temporary, repairs and broader financial recovery take a long time after major disasters, experts say.
“It takes a long time to recoup and recover,” said Loretta Worters, a spokeswoman for the Insurance Information Institute.
Remember you can make a claim on your policy and get assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency at the same time, said Susman.
You might be able to use funds from the government to help you stay in a hotel for a month, then get a place closer to your home and use your loss of use coverage to pay for the difference, Martin said.  More