What is an aggregate attachment point?

The aggregate attachment point limits an employer’s exposure for medical claims incurred by the plan as a whole.

If the aggregate attachment point is $500,000, that means that, once the employer has paid medical claims of $500,000 in total, the employer will be reimbursed by stop-loss insurance for any additional expenses. The aggregate attachment point limits the employer’s liability even if one or more individual participants has not reached the specific attachment point.

So, for example, let’s assume that the employer has twenty participants in its plan. If ten of those participants incur medical expenses of $50,000, for a total of $500,000, the employer will have reached its aggregate attachment point. From that point forward, stop-loss insurance will reimburse the employer for medical expenses incurred by the plan’s participants, even though ten participants have not incurred expenses in excess of $50,000.