Employee Benefits Series Continued - Benefits Options for the Small Business

Small Business Employee Benefits Options

• Major Medical Health Insurance: Major medical health insurance is a type of health insurance that covers the expenses associated with serious illness or hospitalization along with preventative care.  These plans normally have a higher price tag to both the company and the employee.  With the cost of these plans, this can be a difficult benefits for employees to be able to participate in as the cost may be out of their budget compared to health insurance they can get on their own.  These plans also do not include other benefits such as dental/vision, disability, life insurance, accident, or critical illness. 
• Minimum Essentials Coverage (MEC): MEC plans provide basic well-being care to the employees.  They normally cover telehealth wellness and mental services, primary care visits, specialty care visits, urgent care visits, X-rays and labs and basic prescriptions.  Some of these plans can be offered to the employees on a voluntary basis with or without the employer contributing. 
• Health Reimbursement Account (HRA):  An HRA is a kind of health spending account provided and owned by an employer. The money in it pays for qualified expenses, like medical, pharmacy, dental and vision, as determined by the employer.  Employers are able to provide money to the employees to help cover their medical expenses with a tax advantage. 
• Voluntary Benefits:  Voluntary benefits are an essential for any size business.  These are benefits that can be put in place with or without contribution from the employer.  Many of these benefits employees can get for a lower price from employer offering them then they can on their own.  These benefits support the employees' health and financial well-being.  Voluntary benefits include Dental/Vision, Disability, Accident, Critical Illness, Life Insurance, Hospital Indemnity plans, and even pet insurance.  Even if an employee has a major medical plan, there are usually deductibles, co-insurance and out-of-pocket max cost to the plans.  Voluntary benefits help to offset those costs and provide stability to the team.
• Wellness Plans:  There are many incentives for companies to put a wellness plan in place.  These plans provide many benefits the team can take advantage of for to help maintain their mental and physical well-being.  Many of these programs have tax benefits for both the employer and the employee, and cost nothing extra. 

• Major Medical Option:  Putting in a major medical plan with an employer contribution and offering the team voluntary benefits they can choose to participate in themselves.  Utilizing a wellness plan can help to offset some of the cost.
• Quality Benefits Package: Helping the team take care of their basic well being and supporting some of the cost of major issues that may arise at a more affordable cost.  Some businesses decide to put a MEC plan in place along with Voluntary Benefits where more of the team is able to participate. 
• Basic Benefits Package:  Putting in Voluntary Benefits with little to no cost to the business is a value add to employees and allows them to have some support for them and their families. 

• Consult an Insurance Broker :  You should discuss with an Insurance broker what your trying to accomplish, your budget and the employees you are offering the benefits to.  An Insurance Broker can shop multiple carriers and provide multiple options to find the right plans to fit the needs of the business and the employees.
• Have a Quality Open Enrollment :  The right broker should be able to take the hassle of enrollment off your plate.  Providing quality education to the employees about the benefits you are offering goes a long way with the team and understanding what you are providing, what they are signing up for and what is going to fit their budget. 
• Maintain Benefits with New Hires :  Many businesses determine a time frame in which a new hire can sign up for benefits, normally after being employed for 60-90 days.  Working with your broker to maintain the timeliness of these new hires and having them enroll them in their benefit options can take a lot off your plate.