Category Archives: Health Insurance (Employer Group)

More than two years in, and companies around the world are still learning how to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the ongoing threat of new virus variants, employers now face another unforeseen reaction to the pandemic that the media has dubbed as The Great Resignation.

According to the most recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. workers quit their job in near-record numbers in November of 2021, and employers followed up by posting 10.6 million job openings.

The pandemic has forced millions of individuals and families to re-evaluate their priorities, and a startling number of them have yet to return to the workforce. So how can businesses hang on to their existing staff while attracting new talent?

In a word, benefits. The employee benefits landscape is changing, fast. For starters, a base salary, alone, is no longer enough to stay competitive. Companies leading the way have added perks such as flexible working arrangements, increased paid time off, mental health support, parental leave, and even education assistance. And if the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that taking care of one’s health has never been more important. Businesses embracing this are presenting their employees with more group health insurance options than ever before. For instance, some groups are electing to increase their employer contribution amounts toward health insurance plans from 50% to 100% and are even offering richer benefit plans. And what were once voluntary ancillary group benefits, such as dental and telehealth, are now part of many companies’ standard offering.

Your employees invest a lot into your business, and you invest the time and money to train them to be successful in their positions. Over time, you’ve come to value and rely on their consistency, dedication, and hard work. Make sure that they value you just as much.

Our team of licensed benefits counselors can help you curate an employee benefits package that stands out from the rest. Visit our group health & employee benefits page today to schedule an appointment or request a free quote.

Over the past ten years, health insurance has been a hot-topic issue in political arenas and dinner tables alike all throughout the country. From navigating the Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations and compliance details to researching the available insurance offerings themselves, individuals all over are trying to find the best plan benefits for their budget.

Could a health savings account (HSA) be just the thing?

What Is An HSA?

An HSA is designed to act as a tax-deferred savings account to help you cover out-of-pocket expenses.  It can even be used for non-covered insurance expenses provided they fall under the IRS Qualified Medical Expense (QME) list.  This list includes elective procedures, such as Lasik eye surgery.

The general idea is that every month you contribute a set amount into your account and as your HSA grows you receive added financial protection for future healthcare needs, while also tax-sheltering more money.  This is a win-win.  Many banks will also allow you to invest the money you save into Mutual Funds for higher returns.

In order to take advantage of an HSA, you must first participate in an HSA-compatible plan, better known as a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP).

Adding Additional Benefits To Your Health Plan

Unlike a traditional savings account, HSA’s have a triple tax benefit:

1. The contributions that go into your HSA are not taxed.
2. Any interest your HSA earns is tax-free
3. If you make a withdrawal on your HSA to help cover the cost of a qualified medical expense, you can rest easy knowing that that money will also be tax-free.

Another benefit of an HSA is the fact that there is no deadline on when you need to use the money in your account. Because of this, many are reaping the benefits of their HSA’s well into retirement.

Making The Decision

Ultimately, the only person who can decide if a health savings account is right for you, is you. In some cases, your employer might even offer a contribution match to your HSA account up to a certain dollar amount per year, which could help your savings out if you are already putting in the maximum as indicated by the IRS.

To learn more about HSA’s and how they could factor into your health planning, please visit the employer group solutions page.

We’ve all heard of Health Insurance, but it’s not uncommon to hear the term “Ancillary Benefits” in the same sentence. But while everyone is familiar with health insurance, not everyone is equally familiar with ancillary benefits. So, what exactly are they and should you be offering them to your employees?

First and foremost, while health insurance is just health insurance, ancillary benefits can be made up of a variety of different insurance and benefits offerings made available to your employees. Oftentimes, instead of listing out each and every benefit and insurance offering a company may offer, the term “ancillary” may be used instead.

Potential Ancillary Benefits Offerings

But despite the unfamiliarity of the term, the types of insurance benefit offerings it can refer to are all too common. Offerings such as dental and vision insurance, term life insurance, long-term Disability insurance, ID theft protection services, pet insurance, among many others are among the most popular ancillary benefit offerings companies and associations can offer their employees.

Dental and Vision Insurance

Providing your employees with dental insurance can benefit you as much as them. According to the Mayo Clinic, regular dental check-ups can improve an individual’s personal health, and having dental insurance can help save your employees from additional costly expenses should more serious treatments be needed. As is the case with anything health-related, regular check-ups are the key to catching any potential problems early and avoiding costly procedures later on.

Like dental check-ups, regular eye exams not only diagnose vision problems but can also provide early detection of serious health problems. Vision insurance is frequently offered alongside dental insurance and can be every bit as beneficial for employees to have as poor vision can result in everything from migraines, to blindness, and more.

Term-Life Insurance

Life insurance provides crucial financial protection for your family if something were to ever happen to you. An offering like this would help to give your employees peace of mind and let them know that you are looking out for their family’s financial future. It is not uncommon for Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) insurance to be included as well.

Long-Term Disability Insurance

Long-Term Disability insurance has been designed to help protect your employee’s financial well-being in the event an accident or illness occurs outside of the workplace. It is estimated that just over one in four of today’s 20-year-olds will become disabled before they retire. Long-Term Disability insurance helps your employees replace their lost income if they have an accident or illness that prevents them from working. Leading Long-Term Disability Insurance provider Guardian, can provide your employees with up to $10,000 in monthly disability coverage.

ID Theft Protection

In today’s internet age, you can never be too careful when it comes to protecting your identity. According to the 2020 Identity Fraud Study, conducted by Javelin Strategy & Research, $16.9 billion was stolen from consumers in the U.S. in 2019. With cyber criminals showing no sign of slowing down, it falls on individuals to protect their identity with smart banking practices and monitoring services.

Identity theft protection is a great ancillary benefit for employers to offer to their employees and is becoming arguably as important as health insurance to have.

Pet Insurance

Nothing will show your employees that you value them and their happiness more than by offering pet insurance for their four-legged friends. Just like the health costs for your employees, vet bills can be every bit as expensive. But by offering your employees pet insurance, they will be able to make sure that their pets stay as healthy as possible and be reimbursed for their vet visits via their pet insurance company.

Why Your Association Should Offer Ancillary Benefits

When benefit programs meet employees’ needs, employers enjoy a significant competitive advantage in attracting and retaining valuable employees. In addition, employees are more satisfied and become more willing to stay with your company. When you go through your association program, you get access to rate and participation concessions on Dental, Vision, Life, Disability, and more!

To see the benefits we currently offer, please visit our home page.

This time last year we never suspected that wearing a face mask in public and social distancing would become part of our new normal. Concerts, festivals, and sporting events have been rescheduled or canceled, countless businesses have been forced to permanently close, and even Disney World temporarily shut their doors to the public.

With health and safety becoming a major focus this year for everyone, how can employers prepare for changes to the group health and benefits planning process?

Planning Your Benefits

To accurately plan your health benefits for next year, you’ll want to begin by identifying any trends or changes from this year. Here are a few questions you should be considering:

• Have your claims gone up?
• Have you lost employees?
• Does your plan offer a low or no copay telemedicine product?
• Is this the year you should consider a level-funded plan (which can save 10%-15% in premium costs)?
• Do you have capabilities for employees to enroll online without having to collect paper forms?
• Do you need to get even more creative with plan options and your contribution strategy?

Do you normally host enrollment meetings between your employees and broker agent? You may want to plan for virtual meetings this year assuming your agent has the ability.

Our team can offer expert advice, creative solutions, telemedicine, and best-in-class digital capabilities so you never need to collect paper enrollment forms again.

The Newness of the Virus

While plenty of data exists for viruses that have been around for decades, there just isn’t a lot of solid information on COVID-19 costs yet – which can make planning for the next year difficult. How long will the virus last? How much will treatment cost? Will there be any long-term health complications from the virus? These are the kinds of questions that the medical, healthcare and business communities don’t yet have answers to.

We’re here for you.

Need help determining which group health options may work best for your organization? Our licensed benefits counselors are available to answer questions regarding your group health benefits, and may even be able to help you save some money. Visit https://osteopathic.memberbenefits.com/employer-group-solutions/ to learn more about what our team can do for you.

Offering health insurance to your employees may sound like an overwhelming process — but it doesn’t need to be. Once you’ve identified your business’s needs and know the basics of group health insurance, the rest is easy. So, what do you need to know first?

What’s the difference between group and individual health plans?

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “A group health plan is an employee welfare benefit plan established or maintained by an employer or by an employee organization (such as a union), or both, that provides medical care for participants or their dependents directly or through insurance, reimbursement, or otherwise.”

In other words, a group health plan is designed to cover a group of employees, but each enrollee has their own plan with benefits – and the plan’s monthly premium is calculated differently than if it were purchased as an individual health plan.

The monthly premium for all health plans is determined by the perceived risk of the carrier in offering coverage. With a group health plan, the group seeking coverage has their risk pooled together as one, which in some cases, may lower the monthly cost.

Unlike individual plans, group health plans are also available in different types designed to help your business save the most money and make the best coverage decisions. To learn more about these different plan types and ways that your business can save money on group health coverage, feel free to check out our latest group health webinar.

As a business owner, do I have to offer group health insurance to my employees?

Depending on the size of your business, the answer could be no. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) stated that businesses with fewer than 50 full-time employees are not legally obligated to provide health insurance to their employees — but many choose to regardless.

Looking for a better benefits package is one of the most common reasons people change jobs. And if your business doesn’t offer a health insurance benefit, it may give current and prospective employees reason to look somewhere else for employment.

If you are federally mandated to offer health insurance to your employees, you will need to ensure you are following the rest of the ACA’s rules and regulations for small businesses.

Making The Right Group Health Decisions For Your Business

Ready to take a look at your options? Our team of licensed benefits counselors is on hand to help you find the best group health solutions for your business. Visit osteopathic.memberbenefits.com/employer-group-solutions/ or schedule an appointment with us today.

The U.S. unemployment rate is now at its lowest levels since 1969. This strengthening of the American job market has given many workers the confidence to reassess their employment situations in a way that they may not have felt comfortable doing ten years ago.

Employers are realizing that it is becoming harder to attract top talent and keep them. Previous benefits packages such as PTO and 401(k) offerings don’t seem to be enough anymore. So many businesses are now tasked with developing new ways to find and retain good staff.

While a comfortable salary is nice, a growing number of workers are placing a higher value on voluntary benefits. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United States ranks 7^th in the world for Countries With the Worst Work-Life Balance. So the more companies do to make their employees’ lives easier outside of the workplace, the more appealing and valuable those jobs become.

These are some of the most sought-after benefits right now:

Identity Theft Protection

According to Javelin’s 2019 Identity Fraud Study, over 14.4 million people fell victim to identity fraud in 2018 and over 23 percent of victims were not reimbursed for personal expenses. As technology continues to evolve, protecting your identity has never been more important. With new reports of data hacks every month, it’s at the forefront of many minds. Offering identity-theft protection could give employees an invaluable benefit: peace of mind.

Student Loan Refinancing

At the start of 2019, over 44 million U.S. citizens owed more than $1.56 trillion in student loan debt – signaling the highest amount ever recorded. According to Forbes, “Student loan debt is now the second highest consumer debt category – behind only mortgage debt – and higher than both credit cards and auto loans.” For the majority, this level of debt will continue to weigh them down for decades making this a crisis that impacts more than just recent college graduates.

This has led many businesses to begin offering student loan benefits to their employees in the form of refinancing options – or even help to pay down some of their debt (usually a set amount over a period of years). Some businesses who have implemented this approach have seen increased employee retention rates.

Wellness

Providing your employees with the tools they need to maintain their overall physical health can benefit not only them but your business as well. As a result, many employers are choosing to invest in everything from gym memberships to telemedicine options for their employees.

While exercise is a great way to relieve stress and improve overall cognitive abilities such as learning and concentration, sometimes that isn’t enough to fight off common depression and anxiety symptoms.

Roughly 1 million workers are absent from their jobs every day because of stress. According to The American Institute of Stress, “Unanticipated absenteeism is estimated to cost American companies $602.00/worker/year and the price tag for large employers could approach $3.5 million annually.”

Improving the access and affordability of mental health services is something that could greatly benefit businesses and employees alike. Many telemedicine services, such as Teladoc, have ventured into the realm of mental health counseling. This gives employees an additional benefit while allowing them to access crucial mental and physical health services wherever and whenever they need.

Moving Forward

Looking to refresh your voluntary benefits offerings to new and existing employees? Visit https://osteopathic.memberbenefits.com/ to learn about the voluntary ancillary products available to you as a valued member. Our licensed Benefits Counselors are standing by to help guide you to the best benefits for your business and budget. Contact us today!

As group health insurance costs continue to increase, many employers are looking for new, creative ways to save money while still providing their employees with coverage.

Reference Based Pricing

Reference Based Pricing is a rapidly growing strategy that a number of employers are using to save money on group health insurance costs. This technique gives the employee the ability to choose any provider without the limitations and higher costs of a traditional provider network. By choosing to take advantage of this method, employers have the potential to save between 15 and 20 percent on group health insurance costs.

Association Health Plans

According to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Association Health Plans are defined as “group health plans that employer groups and associations offer to provide health coverage for employees.”

In April of this year, the federal government will begin to allow small employer groups to form new associations based on industry and finally receive access to group health insurance plans typically only reserved for larger companies. While many association health plans already exist, the new legislation eliminates the geographic barriers previously in place.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, “four million Americans, including 400,000 who otherwise would lack insurance, will join an AHP by 2023.”

Direct Primary Care

Direct Primary Care (DPC) is an alternative payment model to third-party billing. With DPC, there is a flat monthly membership fee and nothing else. Employees have access to a physician of their choice and the physician remains accountable to only their patients. This option can also exist alongside a comprehensive major medical plan.

Level Funding

For groups of five or more, level-funded plans are becoming increasingly popular. These plans boast a nationwide network of hospitals and physicians and are offered by a number of reputable insurance carriers. Designed to offer more flexibility to employers, level-funded plans are ERISA complaint and partially self-insured with a savings potential of 10 to 15 percent. Many also offer return-of-premium potential.

Learn More

Want to learn more about these strategies? Tune in to our free webinar on March 7^th at 1 pm EST. Jason Cleary, a licensed Benefits Counselor with over 18 years of experience, will be sharing information on how to utilize these tactics and save on group health costs in 2019.

Click to register today.

The Group Health Insurance industry continues to change with premiums continuing to rise. You have probably changed insurance carrier’s multiple times hoping to secure for the deal of the year.

So, the question is: Is that all there is? Change carriers and tweak my benefits?

Group health insurance is usually provided by an employer and can cover just the employee or even the employee’s spouse and children.

Not providing group health coverage could be a major misstep for some companies regardless of size, as there are a number of benefits to providing Group Health Insurance coverage.

1. Lower Costs Than Individual Plans

There is no question that the term health care reform has been a hot-button topic and on the lips of nearly every politician regardless of political party over the course of the past 10 years. In light of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), it has now become more affordable to purchase Group Health Insurance than for your employees to purchase health insurance individually.

Level-funding insurance plan options have been growing in popularity over the past number years. Level-funded plans are ERISA compliant and may offer more flexibility for employers with virtually no risk and offered by several reputable insurance carriers with a nationwide network of hospitals and physicians to choose from.

What has many employers especially excited about these plans is the opportunity for 10%-15% in lower premium costs and the Return of Premium potential. Unlike other policies on the market, with level-funded options, if your employees don’t rack up a large number of claims throughout the year, your company may have a substantial amount of money (originally paid in premiums) returned.