How to solve the high cost of small group health insurance!

Are your health insurance premiums for your small business getting to costly?  Are you waiting for the government to reform health care and lower your cost?  Why wait...you can begin saving substantially now with HSA qualified high deductible health plans.

How much can you save?  15-60% off your current costs


Is there a reduction in benefits?  No, but you can see an increase in benefits


If you currently have a health insurance plan that includes office visit copay's, emergency room visit copays and prescription drug copays...we will want to remove them.  This is the main factor in the high cost you currently have.

Most likely you have a $1,000, $1,500 or $2,500 deductible at either 90% or 80% coverage after the deductible for an additional $2,000-$6,000 per insured in out-of-pocket expenses before the plan will begin to pay 100%  Just with the lowest of the options, you would be looking at $3,000 ($1,000 ded + $2,000 OOP) in exposure before the plan would begin paying 100%.  And...if there is more than one member on the plan, than the above applies for each additional member.  Adding even more exposure when there is more than one insured (husband and wife or family).

When you implement an HSA plan you will have deductibles beginning as low as $1,500 then $2,500 and $3,500 with 100% coverage after the deductible.  When there is more than one insured, the deductible is doubled, but is aggregate between more than one member.  This means that if one insured were to satisfy the deductible on their own, than coverage will be paid at 100% for all remaining members.

HSA plans will provide 100% coverage for annual preventative and wellness care.

Any additional office visit is subject to the plans deductible at the negotiated rate of service.  If there is a copay, then that amount does not apply to the plan.

In going this route, you and your employees will see savings in the portion of premium being paid, reducing the cost on the both sides.  Now, since you are saving a substantial amount of money now, and on future renewals, the concept is to take a portion of the savings and either give it back to the employees through an HSA contribution (employee owns the contribution) or you can set up a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA).  With the HRA, you, the employer would retain the savings and then define a contribution that you are to give to your employees for re-imbursement of medical expenditures.  Going the route of an HRA, the employer will retain the savings until a claim comes in.

Now, with the plan not having any copays, your employees might be weary.  If you were to define a contribution of $500 in the HRA, then the employee would not be concerned if they do visit the doctor, since the first $500 in claims will be on the employer.

Going both the route of an HSA or HRA is retaining money that you would be paying an insurance carrier for pre-paid benefits that rarely get used.

If you have questions about HSAs or HRAs, please call or stop by the shoppe!

-The Shoppe