A lot of you guys are individuals or businesses with only a couple of employees, and so I figured this was a good place to find out what some of you do for health insurance. I don’t know if it’s a State-specific thing or if there’s companies that will provide low-cost insurance with a reasonable co-pay to small businesses or individuals. Reason I’m asking is that I have the opportunity to either hire outright or partner with another person in my line of business (engineering/surveying) but he won’t take the leap from his current place of employment unless he can find a reasonable family health plan. I’ve been looking for one as well, and I just can’t fathom the concept of a health insurance payment that’s almost more than my mortgage. I’d love to tell a potential employee that I can pay him $xx an hour and provide health coverage – it seems that’s what everyone wants. Even more than other benefits such as gas money, company vehicle, retirement 401k, etc.
Any leads I can pursue?
Replies
A. Yes insuracne varies from state to state.
B. Check with your state PE association, chamber of commerces, and similar professional and business groups and see if they offer an insurance plan.
C. Check into getting a Health Savings Account (HSA).
The HSA concept has been around a long time and under different names (Archer and Medical Savings Accounts). But they have been so restricted that few people could get them and few insurance companies would sell the matching insurance.
But this has changed with the HSA's and hopefull more insurance companies are supply qualified polices.
The HSA is an IRA like account for medical expenses. You make tax deductable contributions and then medical expenses can be paid, tax free, from them. Any the money can accumulate.
They require a matching high deductable insurrance plan.
Also note that outside of the HSA's that a strick employee can't get any tax advantages when he pays for medical insurance or expenses other than that over the 7.5% of AGI which is very rare, except for major problems.
However, an owner can get tax advantages for insurance paid for himslef and also for employees (vs paying the employee the same amount).
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Ditto...what Bill Hartman said.With my HSA I don't have a dental plan but I pay for my dentist visits out of the HSA account with tax free money. The same with my son's $5,000.00 orthodontist bill. Anything medical related I pay out of that account, even aspirin at Rite Aid!.View Image
Good luck. Health insurance is expensive, even more so when you're covering entire families.
When I carried my own insurance, it was about $300 a month, and that had high deductables ($1000 and up) and high co-pays, with no Rx coverage at all. Long-term care was not included, and there was no income protection. And that covered me - not the family.
And be careful when shopping around. There are a few companies out there that have "scheduled benefit" plans -- and they don't cost a lot. The salesman will make a big flourish when he tells you that they'll pay $50,000 if you have a heart attack. What he doesn't say is that the average medical total for a heart attack is probably three or four times that amount. Oh -- and he'll probably not be forthcoming with specific definitions for "heart attack" either.
Support our Troops. Bring them home. Now. And pray that at least some of the buildings in the green zone have flat roofs, with a stairway.
Jon
I would try to find a broker. An independent so that you are tied to one plan. And try the different Associations plans. I did not look, where are you? Kaiser has Individual plans where you can sign up as 1 or 2 person "companies".
What you are going to run into is 1 person company is not much of a "group". So the broker may have connections and know the market a bit better.
Ask your GL broker about a refferal.
We are looking at ours again. 15% bump this year.
Figure out how much health insurance would cost your employees. Offer either the cash or the insurance. Guess which they will take every time--the cash.
People talk about benefits, but when it comes down to it what a carpenter would like is more money in their pockets.
Beer was created so carpenters wouldn't rule the world.
Guess which they will take every time--the cash.
People talk about benefits, but when it comes down to it what a carpenter would like is more money in their pockets.
I respectfully disagree.
I work at a place that offers health insurance, 401, paid holidays and progressive vacation. Not a single one of us would trade those bennies for more money...........thats because those bennies have a cash value!
Doug
Not a single one of us would trade those bennies for more money...........thats because those bennies have a cash value!
Of course those have a cash value, but do you know what that value is to you vs. the cost to the organization to provide those bennies? All I'm saying is the perceived cash value to the individual is less than the cost to the organization.
You're also comparing apples to oranges if you are in the legal profession and comparing a typical corporate benefit package with the vast majority of construction companies. The cost structures of the two are very different and making health insurance work with a number of relatively low paid employees involved in high risk activities, with traditionally poor personal health habits is very hard indeed.
While a client only sees a lot of money going in projects, other than a few higher paid employees at the top, the majority of guys swinging hammers would be better off driving a UPS truck or delivering potato chips.
Beer was created so carpenters wouldn't rule the world.
Of course those have a cash value, but do you know what that value is to you vs. the cost to the organization to provide those bennies?
Don, yes I do know what those bennies cost the company that I work for.
All I'm saying is the perceived cash value to the individual is less than the cost to the organization.
That may be so if your talking about a bunch of chimpanzees but I know full well what I'm getting per hour and what I'm getting in terms of bennies. You may be underestimating some by making a statement like that.
You're also comparing apples to oranges if you are in the legal profession and comparing a typical corporate benefit package with the vast majority of construction companies.
Don, I've been around here for a long time and nobody else would think that I was in the legal profession, I think its quite clear what I do for a living. Don't believe everything you read in the profiles otherwise you'd have to believe Brownbagg was a secret agent for the KGB and living in Crawford Texas!
the majority of guys swinging hammers would be better off driving a UPS truck or delivering potato chips.
Then why don't you go drive a UPS truck. I rather enjoy banging a hammer. I chose this profession and am very proud of it.
Doug
Ok. :-)
Beer was created so carpenters wouldn't rule the world.
I did that to the last guy that worked for me - he was offered a job with another firm at identical salary, but the other company offered full health plan and a couple other things that seemed minor. The job was also half an hour's drive further each way, every day, and I was giving him extremely flexible hours. I offered him $400 more a month to offset the health insurance and the extra gas money, and it didn't work. I couldn't afford more than that. He left on really good terms, but was adamant about getting the health plan.
You have a choice:
Group policy - expensive for healthy people
individual policies - expensive for sick people
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I see by your profile that you're in Vermont, so here's a link to your Blue Cross/Blue Shield:
http://www.bcbsvt.com/
I'm self-employed, and so I provide my own health insurance; BCBS (the IL flavor) is the company I use. It offers a variety of different plans at different levels for individuals or groups.
soj
I'm glad up here in Canada we don't have that problem. Other problems, yes, but not that one.
roger
Jon,
I didn't see anyone mention it here yet. A lot of areas now have "Small Business Associations" or "Small Manufacturers Associations".
Usually put together for exactly the purpose of benefit buying power.
Call a few local agents and see if any of them have any worthwhile leads in that direction. Usually in exchange for a few hundred dollars and a little volunteer work to keep the organization alive, you and your employees can join the "association's" group.
It still won't be cheap. It will be cheaper.
Contrary to what some believe, keeping good help means providing them with the means to care for their families both monitarily and by being able to sleep at night nowing they will be cared for in case of a medical emergency.