In a majority of states, you can have access to group healthcare rates if you are a company of two or more full-time employees, but you may not have more than 50 who qualify for insurance to stay within the small business classification. The eligibility requirements may change incrementally from state to state on various other requirements. But, it should be remembered that a company, no matter its size, cannot be denied healthcare coverage based on the health of any of its employees. However, despite this fact, a recent study conducted by Kaiser Permanente and Field Research for Small Business Majority found that only 32% of small business owners currently offer health insurance to their employees. We already know the main reason why money.
While many people outside of a small, successful, business may see money coming in and wonder why the employees aren’t being given healthcare coverage, many don’t consider a large amount of money going out each day and each month that keeps the business running smoothly. In fact, there are many small business owners who live on just as much or even less than their employees do each month, knowing every extra dollar they make needs to go back into the company to continue to help it prosper. This means while it may seem a business owner is making $80,000, after the cost of goods, overhead, employee paychecks, and other costs, there may not be as much leftover in surplus as outsiders would believe. For many small business owners offering insurance to employees is not a small consideration. So, while they may want to offer coverage, it’s not something they can always run right out and do.
This past June the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act and with that ruling, the more vocal of those against the so-called Obamacare seemed to go quiet for a while. However, once the Presidential election was in full swing, the controversial legislation was once more at the forefront of a lot of discussions, some of which grew extremely heated. And, despite the many discussions for and against the ACA, many small business owners still don’t understand what it means for them. If you are like the majority of small business owners out there, you just want to know if you can afford to take care of your employees without going broke.
Here’s the thing about small business owners with less than 50 employees. You won’t be required to provide insurance for your employees, but we know that you want to because most small companies tend to employ people who are oftentimes friends or relatives, or men and women who become like family to you. However, despite that desire to provide coverage for your employees, we also understand that many times it just feels like it is financially impossible to find affordable insurance to offer them. This is when you really need to work with a company that understands both your desire to provide coverage and your financial constraints.
Using the right company for your health insurance quotes may actually be able to save you as much as 30% on premiums. But, before you begin looking for small business health insurance quotes, it is important you understand more about healthcare and small business and how it may work for yourself. When considering being able to offer healthcare to your employees, you’ll be deciding between two primary approaches. One approach is using indemnity coverage. Under indemnity coverage, there is greater freedom of choice with regard to which healthcare service you want. Under the less costly managed care, the rules of the insurance are more restrictive.
However, there may be insurance plans available to you where features of both of these types of insurance are available. Or, you can even choose to offer several healthcare options and let your employees make the decision in which to use, leaving the employee to pay the difference on a more expensive policy. An indemnity plan is administered by the insurance company with whom you have taken out the coverage. Otherwise, this is traditional healthcare coverage, the kind most people think of when they think of health insurance. Under this type of policy, your employees can go to any doctor they choose, as well as any clinic or hospital. Like most plans, it will only assert that the care must be medically relevant and not break the terms of the plan.
Managed care is somewhat the opposite, though it can be managed by a health insurance company, you may recognize more of these plans as being managed through an HMO, or Health Maintenance Organization. For those under a managed care plan, the more stringent of these policies require the policyholders to use only those physicians found in the HMO directory, a primary care physician. Other than in an emergency or under recommendation from your PCP, you will always go to your plan doctor for all of your medical needs.
Before we go further in discussing the specifics, let’s just say that the rules and regulations of carrying in policy are usually fairly in-depth, and rather than trying to understand them completely on your own, it just makes a lot of sense to put your trust into a company who makes it their sole job to do all of the leg work that you may not have time to do, a company who can look up plans from all available health insurance providers to present you with a comprehensive look at what is out there and available to you. By allowing a reputable independent broker to do all the work for you, you can spend your time doing what you need to do, which is continue to run your business and ensure its success so that you can decide on which healthcare option is going to work best for your needs, your company needs, and your employees’ needs.
When you believe you are absolutely ready to really look into obtaining healthcare for your employees, help doesn’t have to stop at being able to get a few small business health insurance quotes. When you use a brokerage company with licensed insurance agents who care, they will remain with you for the life of the policy. That means that the very first person you come in contact with will become your own personal liaison into understanding what is available to you as a business owner. Using the information you provide he or she will be able to weed out all the extraneous policies that wouldn’t be in you or your employee’s best interests.
And, do not forget, group health insurance policy rates are regulated under the law. What this means for you is that you will always be getting the lowest rates possible. As a small business owner looking for health insurance quotes, it should not be a frustrating journey. Rather, as someone who is lifting up the economy by providing jobs, finding a suitable healthcare insurance coverage that is right for your business should be an experience that leaves you feeling completely taken care of and wholly satisfied that your employees are receiving the very best that you can offer, a benefit that will not only protect your employee but also serve the longevity of your company by keeping workers healthy and happy.
Jesse Smedley is the Principal Broker for iHealthBrokers and the founder, president, and CEO of Smedley Insurance Group, Inc. and iHealthBrokers.com. Since the inception of SIG in 2007, Jesse has been dedicated to helping people save money on their health insurance by providing them with resources to educate themselves on all their health insurance options, both under age 65 and Medicare beneficiaries. He is featured in many publications as well as writes regularly for expert columns regarding health insurance and Medicare.
