For Business owners who have decided to not offer health insurance to their employees…
Back in 2009, when President Obama, first laid out his plans for what would become known as Obamacare (ACA), we were promised better. Better plans, better pricing, and better access. For most of us, none of this has become a reality. Matter of fact, it has gone from bad to worse. Higher premiums, more limited plan selections, and a shrinking network of doctors and providers is what we ended up with. As a business owner, you may want to take advantage of what is in front of you. When ACA first started, a lot of small business owners dropped coverage and those who were larger made the decision to just pay the penalties. If you are in a highly competitive industry, maybe now is the time to reconsider your options and your past decisions.
Before I go on, allow me to explain. The individual insurance market is going crazy in two ways. First, the rising premiums will get worse and not better. Some of the major players (insurance carriers) are either opting out or raising premiums 40%-60%. This will drive many individuals either out of the market completely or, for those who can, it will drive to them to seek employment with companies that offer some type of health insurance benefits.
The second way the individual market is going crazy is an ever decreasing provider network. If you compare the number of providers that were considered “in network” in 2010 to 2017 for a PPO plan on the individual market, the numbers would startle you.
When you deal with these issues, like I do, on a daily bases, it’s easy to see this is not working and has very little chance of changing in a positive direction anytime soon. So how do you take advantage of the situation? The answer is simple, but takes an investment. Offer a comprehensive benefits package that includes major medical for your employees. With the two issues I mentioned above, individuals will be looking more and more for ways to find quality healthcare for themselves and their families. As their options continue to shrink, they will become more desperate and that may include changing jobs and some may even decide to change industries. What at one time was considered the norm will become a very valuable recruiting tool for you to recurit new employees and handcuffs for existing employees.
If you need help figuring out the great maze of employee benefits, please feel free to reach out to me either by e-mail or by phone. I will with help you figure out a solution or refer you to a trusted partner who can.
469-218-0073
steve@ocihr.com