Group Health

What is group health insurance?

Group health insurance is a single policy issued to a group of people, offering healthcare benefits to all members. In most cases, these policies are purchased by employers and offered to eligible employees (W2 employees working 30 hours per week or more) and their families as part of an employee benefits package. Enrolling in group health insurance generally costs participants less than what they would pay for an individual healthcare policy for two main reasons:

1. The risk is spread over the whole group, as opposed to just one individual.
2. In order to offer coverage, the employer must pay for at least 50% of the cost of the employee's part of the health insurance.  Requirements by PPACA also require that employers not charge the employees, for health insurance, more than 9.5% of the lowest wage earner in the company.
   
3. The portion that the employee pays can be "pre-taxed" which saves both the employee & employer money.

What are the benefits of group health insurance?

For employees, the benefits of group health insurance include the reduced price of healthcare and the ease of enrolling through their employer. For employers, the benefits range from attracting quality workers to the tax credits they can receive.

Is your business required to purchase group health insurance?

Large businesses with 50 or more employees are now required to offer group health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees are not required to offer coverage, but many choose to do so in order to attract & retain quality employees.

Contact us today for more information about group health insurance.