Comparing Small Business Group Health Insurance Options
Most Common Types of Health Insurance Plans
- Health Maintenance Organization (HMO): HMO is a network of insurance providers that have joined hands to offer a wide range of healthcare services to its members. This makes such insurance plans affordable with relatively low out-of-pocket costs, but it restricts members to a particular group of medical providers.
- Preferred Provider Organization (PPO): PPO is a more premium version of HMO as it offers its members a much more extensive network of medical providers, granting you a lot more flexibility. However, all of these added benefits add to the overall costs, making the insurance premiums much higher than an HMO.
- Point of Service Plan (POS): POS is what you call a hybrid as it contains features from both PPOs and HMOs. Thus, the insurance premiums are somewhere in the middle between the two types of insurance plans. That said, the one drawback is that the network size of POS plans varies by location.
What Are Your Requirements?
To get the best insurance plan for your small business, it is essential to first access your needs. Now that we have the information, we need regarding the different types of available insurance options, let’s consider the requirements.
- Who Will Be Covered?
When picking an insurance plan for your small business, it is important to first look at your employees and their dependents’ needs and see which plan suits their diverse medical and financial the most.
- How Much Cost Sharing Can The Business Afford?
Since the employer and the employees share the premiums in a small business, it is vital to consider the budget for both and how much they can pay for the insurance plans.
- Which Benefits Are Vital?
All three of the Health Insurance plan types listed above come with their own set of pros and cons. Hence, when selecting a plan for your small business, it is important to know what benefits are critical to the workforce. Considering this can significantly help in shortlisting the best one.
Health Insurance Enrollment Process For Small Businesses
The enrollment process consists of your employees and their dependents agreeing on signing up for the all-new insurance plans.
- To make things easier, a licensed healthcare benefits representative will guide you through the entire enrollment process once a plan has been selected.
- During the enrollment process, make sure to answer every question honestly and to the best of your knowledge, as doing so will bear the best results. No employee will be decline coverage, but some might have different premiums based on their medical history.
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Maybe you have been contemplating how to provide decent health insurance without costing all of your businesses profits. Most people
Are You a One (Wo)Man Show?
For those running a small business, finding health insurance options for either themselves (if they work alone) or for their employees can be quite confusing as there are several different options out there—each with its own set of benefits and flaws. To help these businesses out, we will talk about the various health insurances for self-employed individuals and small businesses with fewer than 50 employees.
Having to run an entire business all by yourself is pretty stressful on its own, and that’s without having to think over your health insurance options. Fortunately, the Affordable Care Act allows self-employed workers a health insurance premium credit up to 100% of their health insurance premium. They can search for the Health Insurance Marketplace for plans that fit their requirements, and that’s about it. If, however, if you qualify for a credit but you have missed out on the ACA Open Enrollment deadline date for applying for health insurance, don’t worry. You can simply opt for a short-term health insurance plan that runs till the ACA Open Enrollment kicks off again.
Furthermore, you can look at the Medicaid healthcare coverage and see if you qualify for it. If not, there is always the option of electing to self-fund your health insurance which has become easier today. Many insurers now offer self-insured employee healthcare, granting you flexibility in choosing the perfect plan for yourself.
Moving on up...
Things start to get a little more complicated when moving from self-employed to a business featuring two to 50 employees. For such businesses, you have to look for health insurance plans that meet your requirements and those of your employees. So, to help you select the best health insurance plan for your small business, we have listed the most common options down below. From here, you can see which one is the right fit for your business and your employees. Getting coverage through a small business insurance plan will often be less expensive than opting for self-fund insurance.
How Much Does The Business Have To Pay?
Deciding how much the employer pays for its employees is up to the business and its budget. Typically, the rate is set at 50% of the employee’s monthly premium, with the other half and the monthly premium of their dependent being covered by the employee.
That said, the minimum employer contribution levels may differ from state to state. Plus, every insurance company has its own minimum contribution levels. Some employers opt to cover a higher percentage of the employee’s monthly premium. Some go one step beyond and cover a portion of the employee’s dependents monthly premium as well.
So, you have to take all of this into account when deciding how much you want to pay for your employee’s monthly premium, which you can do during the application process.
How Can I Research And Purchase A Health Insurance Plan?
I’m Larry Medcalf, a licensed health insurance agent and benefits advisor. I’m here to assist businesses of all sizes in finding and enrolling in the coverage that makes the most sense to the business and its employees. My staff and I are available to answer your questions, recommend coverage, complete the underwriting requirements for your chosen carrier and walk your employee’s through their enrollment choices when the time comes. Please fill out the form below or contact me at your convenience on my mobile phone (317-514-8696) any time during the day.
Comparing The Different Small Business Health Insurance Options
If you have read the information written above, you know there are several factors to consider when picking a health insurance plan for your small business. However, to making the process slightly less daunting, we recommend using the following criteria to find the best possible plan.
- Monthly Premiums: Know just how much you and your employees are willing to pay every month.
- Deductibles, Copayments, and Coinsurance: See what type of payments will be the most manageable by you and your employees when receiving medical care.
- Medical Provider Networks: If you prefer specific doctors or medical facilities, see which insurance plan includes them in its network coverage.
- Prescription Drug Coverage: We offer a Rx comparison tool that can see which insurance plans cover the costs of certain drugs and prescriptions.
- Coverage Add–ons: To ensure all of your employee’s needs are covered, you can opt for additional riders and supplements, such as vision, dental care, hearing and disability.
Can I Help My Employees Pay For Their Private Insurance?
Previously, the Affordable Care Act did not allow this practice until recently. Now, employers have access to plans designed to enable them to help their employees purchase private insurance plans. For instance, the Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) is an employer-funded plan that reimburses employees for qualified medical expenses and, in some cases, insurance premiums. Furthermore, employers can claim a tax deduction for the reimbursements they make through such plans, and reimbursements given to the employee are generally tax-free.
What Will It Cost?
After you have submitted your application, the Insurance company will first access your small business using its own criteria, including the size and location of your business and your employees’ ages. Once done, the insurance company will review and approve your application, after which it will determine the final monthly cost and premium for your business’ insurance plan. If part of the ACA, your employees’ health, including their medical records, will no longer affect the business’ health insurance rates.
Remember, the final monthly rate devised by the insurance company will not be affected by your decision to apply through us, or any other health insurance broker, agent, or directly with the insurance company.