How to Choose the Best Health Insurance for Your Small Business

August 12, 2021

|By CJ

Regardless of how tough the going gets for your small business, never forget to take care of your most valuable asset: your employees. Employees are the lifeblood of your company, and you should give them small business health insurance plans that satisfy their needs.

Unfortunately, small businesses neither have the resources nor connections to offer top-tier health insurance plans that some large corporations provide. However, you don’t have to be a multinational company to give your employees health coverage they can be proud of.

Today, we’ll look at how small business owners can find the best health insurance plans for their employees.

Work With Your Budget

The first major consideration when choosing a health care plan for your business is the cost. You don’t want to spend too much on your company health insurance and run your business to the ground. You also can’t spend too little and give your employees substandard coverage.

This presents a real challenge for employers, given that they contribute about 82% of the premium cost for individual coverage and 70% for family coverage.

Regardless of how much you contribute, you must work within your budget. Avoid overreaching because it’ll hurt both your business and eventually your employees when you miss premium payments.

Ensure you explore all your options to find a healthcare plan within your budget and one that gives bang for the buck. Also, avoid going for the cheapest option unless you want your employees and their families to feel they aren’t valued.

Involve Your Employees in Your Health Insurance Decisions

Your employees are at the core of your company’s health insurance, so why not involve them in the decision-making process? Employees can give you valuable insight to help you find the best health insurance and cut insurance costs. So how do you involve your employees in the decision-making process?

There are many ways to get your employees’ opinions on what healthcare plan works best for them and your business. Some of the most effective ones include:

Suggestion Boxes

A simple suggestion box goes a long way in giving your employees a voice. Suggestion boxes can either be physical or digital. The latter works best because you can categorize suggestions and know what employees feel about various matters concerning your business, including health insurance.

Employee Surveys

Conduct regular employee surveys and learn what employees feel about their current health insurance. This lets you know whether it’s time to change health insurance or stick with the current one. If it’s time for a change, surveys also tell you which insurance plan is best suited for your company.

Committees or Leadership Teams

Set up leadership teams or committees and let the teams find out what employees feel about the company’s health insurance. Pick the most dedicated employees to lead the teams. It should only take the teams a week or two to get conclusive results.

Plan Design

After getting your employees’ thoughts on a suitable health insurance plan for the business, if it’s appropriate for the business, it’s time to lock down the plan design. With plan design, your options boil down to three types of health plans which are:

Preferred Provider Organization

This is the most flexible plan for employees since it provides in-network and out-of-network options. It’s also the most pocket-friendly to employers and employees if they choose the right network providers.

Health Maintenance Organization

This is a health plan that employees tailor to meet their specific needs. This ensures employees get all the health services they need but don’t pay for any unnecessary ones. Employees have the option of visiting any in-network specialist even without a referral.

Point of Service

This is an ideal plan for employers who want to cut costs with managed care, but need the flexibility of a standard healthcare plan. Employees that choose an in-network PCP receive full health benefits. Those that don’t can settle for an out-network one but pay extra out-of-pocket costs.

Does My Small Business Qualify for Group Health Insurance?

Group insurance is often more affordable than individual insurance. However, you’ll need to meet certain requirements for you to qualify for group insurance. The requirements are:

Have 50 Employees or Less

Your small business must have fifty employees or less to qualify for group insurance. However, you can still be eligible if you have over 50 employees. All you need to do:

Go for large group health insurance
Meet the minimum group health care standards
Meet all group coverage reporting requirements

If you check all the above boxes, you can qualify for group coverage even with over 50 employees.

Meet the Employee Criteria

You can enroll in the group health insurance plan as an employer. However, you’ll need at least one actual employee in the plan too. The employee shouldn’t be:

Your spouse or family member
A co-owner of the business
A part-time or seasonal worker
A contractor working for you or your business

If you and your business fit the above criteria, then you qualify for group health insurance. At least you can save a few bucks which you can channel into other aspects of your business.

Who Counts as an Employee

When it comes to group health insurance, the following qualify as employees:

Any full-time employee of the company
Any equivalent full-time employee

Group health insurance only covers employees who fit the above description. You’ll need different healthcare coverage for part-time and seasonal employees.

Settle for Nothing but the Best Small Business Health Insurance

Your business deserves only the best health insurance plan to protect your employees’ health and take your business to greater heights. Hopefully, the information above has been more than helpful in showing you how to pick the best small business health insurance for your company.

Remember to explore all your options and choose the best of the best. If you qualify for group health insurance, go for it!