Let’s face the facts, health insurance is about as interesting as college level calculus. You never really think twice about it until you need it the most. Many choose to go without health insurance because they cannot afford it or have pre-existing health conditions. Worse yet many have not yet found out the harsh reality of what it is like to be stuck with expensive medical bills and will go with out coverage even though they are healthy!
If you have applied for individual health insurance before and experienced frustration with the medical underwriting process then you may want to look into going with a California short term health insurance plan.
Here are some important things you may not have known about short term health coverage:
Coverage is effective the next day from when you apply
Yep you heard it right. Your health insurance policy will go into effect the next day from when you submit a short term application. With individual coverage it can take up to a month or sometimes longer depending on the extent of your medical history. It is important to keep in mind that a short term health health plan is catastrophic only coverage meaning you preventive care is not covered. In the long run it is better to have a short term policy than nothing at all simply because going with out health coverage can leave the door open for bankruptcy to creep in!
The application is much simpler
You will have anywhere from 10-12 eligibility questions to answer on a short term application. If you’ve ever filled out an application for individual coverage than you understand it can be frustrating. If you don’t have medical records handy that contain specific dates of past medical services then you can’t complete the application unless you have an unbelievable photographic memory! Bottom line, the short term application brings with it much less stress.
Short term health plans offer excellent catastrophic coverage
Like individual coverage, short term health plans offer great coverage for major accident or illness. The only downside is that these plans are on a limited term basis so if you run out of coverage and need to apply for a new policy you are on the hook for any pre-existing conditions. Yes, that broken arm was covered quite nicely on your previous short term plan but now if you find yourself needing physical therapy and were able to transfer into a new policy, the physical therapy will be considered pre-existing and not be covered! While a short term health plan is excellent catastrophic coverage we recommend you get an individual or group insurance plan if they are available. This way you will save yourself the hassle of dealing with pre-existing conditions.
A guide to setting up your small business health insurance in California!
Are you looking to give your employees the advantage of health benefits? Whether you have two or thirty employees they’ll find value in small business health insurance California. Not only that, employees will be healthier and require less sick days when medical professionals are easily accessible. Regardless of pre-existing health conditions employees will be accepted because small business health insurance is guarantee issue under California law AB 1672.
Here are some things you may want to prepare before talking to your California health insurance agent:
- How many employees do you have and how many would like to accept coverage? There are employee participation requirements required for getting small business health insurance. Most carriers require 75% participation to be considered for group plans.
- How much are you willing to pay for each employee premium? You’re required to pay a portion of each employee premium, sometimes as little as 25% or a flat dollar amount as low as $50.
- Do you have at least two employees? Most carriers require you to have two full time employees as shown on the DE 6 or quarterly tax and wage statement. With some carriers, limited liability companies (LLC) aren’t required to show payroll records if they can provide LLC documents with an operating agreement.
- Do you have your employee’s personal information readily available? Most insurance agencies require a date of birth, height and weight, home address, dependent details, and other pieces of information to get an accurate quote. It’s a good idea to have a completed group census before calling your agent.
- Are the employees not accepting group health insurance considered an eligible waiver. Employees not qualifying as eligible waivers may put your small business below the employee participation requirements for obtaining group insurance.
- And finally, do you have an agent who can answer all your questions and relay missing information from insurance carriers to you in a timely manner? Getting small business health insurance can be a long process if you’re not working with the right people. JC Lewis Insurance Services has been helping small employer’s get affordable employee benefits for over thirty years.
For more information on obtaining California group health insurance for your small business please give us a call toll free at 866-745-9555. We’ll get you set up in no time!
Many employers cringe at the thought of having to offer California group health insurance to their employees. They feel as though the process is long, difficult, and overly expensive. Employers want to provide good coverage, but they do not want to bankrupt their company while doing so. On the flip side, many employees feel as though good health insurance should always be provided, and that employers should only choose plans that benefits employees the most, regardless of cost. CA group health insurance plans can offer great options for all parties involved. Below are the benefits of group insurance from both the employee and the employer’s prospective.
Benefits For The Employer
In 1992, The California State Legislature passed Assembly Bill 1672 to regulate health insurance companies operating in California. This piece of legislation modified the laws and made practices fairer for consumers. The major components of the bill included: allowing coverage for companies that have between two and fifty employees and are classified as either a sole proprietorship, an LLC, an LLP, or a corporation; guaranteeing insurance coverage for these companies; and imposing mandatory price limits on coverage.
These changes allowed employers to purchase benefit packages, at a fair price, with no question of coverage for all employees and their dependants regardless of health condition. Insurance companies could no longer deny or cancel coverage for individuals with a history of poor health as long as the coverage was purchased as a CA group health insurance plan. The mandatory price limits imposed on such coverage dictated that insurers had to limit the price range that could be charged for specific small groups. Insurance providers now had to base their pricing on the ages of the employees, and how the overall company fit into the established Risk Adjustment Factor (RAF) for the county it resides in. For example, if a company has all healthy employees, the insurance provider may offer a maximum reduction in price of up to ten percent below the set RAF. On the other hand, if the company has several employees with health conditions, the insurance provider cannot charge more than ten percent above the set RAF.
These legislative changes helped to put employer’s minds at ease, by allowing them to offer better coverage options without the worry of inflated costs.
Benefits For The Employee
Quite possibly the number one benefit for employees seeking group medical insurance in California is that he or she will not be denied coverage, even if he or she has pre-existing health conditions. Unlike with individual health insurance plans, small group plans cannot discriminate amongst employees or deny coverage for any reason.
In addition to not being denied coverage by the insurance company, employers must offer insurance to a certain number of workers. Employers who elect to go with a small group plan must offer coverage to, and must enroll, a minimum of seventy-five percent of all eligible employees. Employees are considered eligible if they work at least thirty hours per week. Only employees who are covered by another group plan (usually through a spouse’s employer) can opt out of the offered coverage.
Finally, employees do not have to worry about paying full price for health insurance. Employers cannot defer one hundred percent of the monthly cost of CA group health insurance to the employees. California state law states that an employer must contribute a minimum of fifty percent of the employee only cost of the insurance plan selected. This safeguard was put in place to further guarantee that participation requirements could easily be met and that fair business practices would be carried out.
While group medical insurance in California can be expensive, and it is sometimes difficult for a business owner currently offering no health insurance to begin paying $2,000 or more per month, there are several benefits for both parties. Lower rates, guaranteed coverage, price limits, and guaranteed renewal are benefits that are worthwhile for everyone involved.
