Andrew Riexinger left Mercer after nearly 14 years as a principal, but he did not go to another consulting firm. He joined Alliant Insurance Services as a vice president within its employee benefits group in New Jersey, on the brokerage side of a market where that distinction now matters more than it has in years.
Employer health benefit costs are set to rise 6.5 percent on average in 2026, the highest projected increase since 2010, according to Mercer's 2025 National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans. Employers that take no action face an average increase of nearly 9 percent. At that level of cost pressure, the broker sitting across from an HR director at renewal needs to do more than present carrier quotes.
Riexinger's background spans financial underwriting, claims analysis, plan design, and benefits strategy. At Mercer, he guided employer clients through renewals, market evaluations, and emerging healthcare trends. Before Mercer, he spent three years as a senior financial analyst at ACE Limited, where he modeled credit exposures and advised underwriters on program structure. He earned a bachelor's degree in finance from The College of New Jersey.
Kevin Overbey, president of Alliant Employee Benefits, said Riexinger's ability to translate financial and market insights into actionable benefits strategies would deliver value to clients in the Northeast. The comment points to a pattern in Alliant's recent hiring. The firm has consistently sought advisors who operate at the intersection of financial analysis and client strategy rather than as traditional placement brokers.
Alliant has made several additions to its employee benefits group this year, part of a broader staffing build-out across the division.
Riexinger will work with Northeast employers on plan design, financial underwriting, and carrier evaluations. His mandate includes leading multidisciplinary client teams through renewals and helping organizational leaders weigh benefits decisions against cost and workforce data. Employers who once met with their broker only at renewal now expect that conversation to be grounded in claims analysis and multi-year cost modeling.
The pressure on employer health plans has intensified across the broader market. Employers project a median 9 percent healthcare cost trend for 2026, according to Business Group on Health's 2026 Employer Health Care Strategy Survey. That figure falls to 7.6 percent with plan design changes. Pharmacy costs are expected to climb a further 11 to 12 percent, a pressure point that plan design adjustments alone cannot fully address.
Advisors who understand how claims experience drives renewal rates can model plan structures under different cost scenarios. That skill set, long built inside firms like Mercer, is now something brokerages are actively recruiting for. Riexinger's move from principal at a global consulting firm to vice president at a regional brokerage reflects that shift in what brokers need to offer.
Alliant is not the only firm making that bet. Across the market, brokerages are adding advisors with deeper clinical and financial expertise as employers demand more from the renewal conversation.
