Can I Keep My Workplace Benefits Plan if I Engage a PEO?

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As you probably know, PEOs offer the following benefits: relief from the growing burden of employment administration, improved employment practices, improved workplace compliance, HR assistance, payroll services, risk management, comprehensive employee benefits packages, and so much more!

When it comes to benefits particularly, many companies “win” through the co-employment relationship. By pooling together employees from multiple client companies, PEOs bring forth tremendous purchasing power – often passing along low rates, great options, and additional benefits you may not have previously been able to offer your employees.

But, what if you’re a young and healthy office that already celebrates low health insurance rates? Whatever the PEO is offering you may actually cost more than what you have in place for your employees.

Or, what if your current plan has extremely robust benefits such as vision, dental, and coverage for various specialists? Can you carve out the cost of benefits from a PEO contract and leave your existing plan in place?

All PEOs are different, but in most cases the PEO will consider it and it’s absolutely worth asking. If they are not willing to take employee benefits out of the proposed contract, and you are beyond happy with your existing plans and prices, we recommend that you keep shopping for a PEO.

You don’t need to settle for a PEO contract that isn’t the perfect fit for your unique situation. If you proceed with the PEO’s proposed benefits plan, you may be paying for plans you won’t necessarily utilize or dropping a plan that your employees are really happy with – resulting in employee dissatisfaction.

Please contact Employer Solutions Plus if you’re having trouble finding the perfect PEO. We represent countless PEOs across the country, many of which don’t require signing on to their insurance plan if you’d like to keep your own.

Lower Your Company’s Health Insurance Costs… Immediately!

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Do you cover some or all of your employees’ health insurance premiums? Depending on the number of employees at your workplace, health insurance could be a very large outgoing expense each month. As business owners, it’s only smart for us to look at our accounts payable each month and decide what needs to go, or what can be cut back on.

However, cutting back on health insurance and benefits for your employees is NOT a good approach! Offering benefits comes with its own list of great benefits.  Do you want to continue offering benefit rich plans but decrease your company’s overall health insurance costs each month?

It IS possible – here are a few ways:

  • A lot of health insurance costs are related to chronic conditions like obesity or cardiovascular disease. These most often are conditions that are preventable and reversible. Many health insurance companies are willing to reduce premiums for companies or organizations that take proactive steps to promote a healthier workforce/workplace. Does your company have an employee wellness program (EWP) or employee assistance program (EAP) in place?
  • Explore the marketplace for more competitive bids. You don’t have to lose special perks or settle for higher deductibles to save money on health insurance. It is always smart to get an outsider’s opinion from a professional with access to multiple providers and plans.
  • Don’t be afraid to bundle! Insurance companies love loyalty – especially if you’re a large group. Bundling multiple lines of coverage with the same insurance carrier (health, dental, life, and disability) can significantly reduce your premium costs each month. If you are currently utilizing multiple providers, consider condensing all benefits under one provider’s umbrella instead.
  • Partner with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO). Partnering with a PEO offers small to mid-sized employers access to “big company benefits.” PEOs have stronger purchasing power when it comes to health insurance due to the overall population size of their employee base. They pool employees from numerous client companies on to a single company policy (the PEO’s policy) through the co-employment relationship. They also offer access to ancillary benefits you may not have been able to offer in the past!

Is it time for your company to save on health insurance? At Employer Solutions Plus, we represent the “best of” in employer solutions – whether it’s a company health insurance plan, or a full-suite PEO solution.  We represent multiple providers in each product category which allows us the flexibility to customize a cost effective solution to meet the individual needs of our clients.

Contact our team for more ways to save on your company’s health insurance premiums.

 

Small Group Employers – How Are Premium Rates Determined?

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Are you shopping around for health insurance? You may be wondering where the various health insurance companies are getting their numbers from.

In most states, laws permit small group health insurance companies to determine their initial premium rates for each client company through medical underwriting. Medical underwriting uses medical or health information to evaluate the applicant(s) applying for health insurance coverage. As part of the process, each person’s health information is used to determine whether or not the person (or group) will be provided with coverage, and what the premium rate is going to be.

In other states, small group health insurance companies use a process called modified community ratings to determine their initial rates. In states where this is enforced, modified community ratings require health insurance providers to offer policies at the same exact rate to all persons within a given geographic territory.

Most small group employers have to go through the medical underwriting process, because it is a much more common practice than modified community ratings. Premium charges are directly affected by claims history and your employees’ existing health attributes and habits … do you have employees that are overweight? Do you have employees that smoke? These traits could potentially increase the health insurance company’s risk of taking on your group, which therefore will increase the premium rate.

At Employer Solutions Plus, we represent the “best of” in health insurance options and employee benefits. This allows us the flexibility to customize a cost effective solution to meet the individual needs of our clients. If you’re shopping around, and not seeing the numbers you expected, please contact us for additional insight and help.

Health Insurance: I’m a Small Employer…What Are My Coverage Requirements?

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You’re a small business and you’re growing … you’ve finally got 10 employees! While you’d love to provide them all with health insurance, you don’t actually have to by law. At this time, there are no federal or state laws requiring small employers to offer benefit plans to their employees.

There are however a number of laws surrounding group health plans, if you do decide to offer health insurance to select employees. These include ERISA and HIPAA, and they address issues such as setting minimum standards for most voluntarily health plans in the private sector, as well as the protection of individually identifiable health information and rights granted to individuals.

While you may not be required by law to provide your employees with health insurance, health insurance coverage is a valued employee benefit that will help you attract and retain top talent. A competitive employee benefits package has the power to differentiate you from fellow employers within your market or industry, which gives your organization more ways to grow and thrive.

Does the thought of introducing additional compliance concerns to your workplace scare you? For businesses engaged in a PEO relationship, expert help with risk management and compliance protects the client from costly fines and lawsuits surrounding ERISA and HIPAA. PEOs also assume much of a business’s risk through the co-employment relationship.

For smaller or select companies that may not benefit financially from entirely outsourcing “everything HR,” Employer Solutions Plus offers Benefits-Only Management for Group Health Plans. Our health insurance experts focus on setting up your policies, while you focus on growing your business.

For more information on health insurance and compliance, visit our benefits section within this blog. For immediate questions or concerns, contact us.