The Best Group Health Insurance for Small Business Owners

What is Group Health Insurance for Small Business Owners?

A group health insurance plan for small business is purchased by a small business owner to provide health insurance coverage to their employees. This plan is typically offered to all employees of the business and may include coverage for the employees’ dependents.

And What is Small Group Plan in Health Insurance?

Small group health insurance is designed for businesses or organizations with up to 100 employees, while large group health insurance covers companies with over 1000 employees. Other factors differentiating these two types of health insurance include premiums, benefits, and coverage.

Get to Know

Why should a small business owner buy a health insurance?

Small business owners usually put a lot of effort and hard work to make it successful. Since the employees of any organization are its pillars, then we need to ensure their good health & financial stability. And this is the reason we are having a small business health insurance plan for your employees is essential.

What is the eligibility for group health insurance & how to buy it?

It is important to know the requirements to get group health insurance & how to get it. Because in these things most of the people make mistakes and then they don’t know how to do it correctly. Any organization, startup, cultural/social establishment or any other group sharing the same interest can purchase a group health insurance policy. As per NAIC, McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945, any company or group with at least 20 team members eligible for buying group insurance scheme.

You will have to fill your details your city, the number of people covered and the average age group of members covered. The calculator will give you an estimate of the insurance premium amount.

What is the difference between group medical insurance and health insurance?

As we know, a group health insurance plan is also called corporate health insurance, an incentive that your employer provides you. It may or may not offer coverage to your dependent family members. While An individual insurance policy, is the health insurance that you buy yourself for your personal use.

What are the types of group health insurance?

Types of Group Insurance Plans available in US :

• Group Health Insurance/ Medi claim Cover.
• Personal Accident Insurance.
• Group Pension/Superannuation Insurance.
• Group Employee Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI)
• Workmen/Employee Compensation Insurance.
• Group Travel Insurance.
• Public Liability Insurance.

What is business health insurance and its Importance

A group health insurance plan for small business is a type of health insurance plan that is purchased by a small business owner to provide health insurance coverage to their employees. This plan is typically offered to all employees of the business and may include coverage for the employees’ dependents.

Your health insurance policy takes care of miscellaneous costs like medical tests, doctor consultation fees, medicines, hospitalization charges, and even post-hospitalization care. The medical care provider is paid directly by the insurance company if there is a tie-up between the company and the provider.

What is the most common type of group insurance?

Employer-sponsored Insurance

The most common type of group insurance is employer-sponsored insurance. Employers offer insurance benefits as part of their employee benefits package to attract and retain talent.

Best Health Insurance for Small Business Owners

Kaiser Permanente and Blue Cross Blue Shield are the best health insurance companies for small business owners, based on LifeMedicaid’s analysis. United Healthcare also received high marks.

Company	Lifemedicaid Experts	Plans offered to Small Businesses	Size of Provider Network	Learn More
	5.0 STAR RATINGS	HMO, POS, PPO	23,900 Physicians	Learn More
Kaiser Permanente
	5.0 STAR RATINGS	EPO, HMO, POS, PPO	1.7 million+ healthcare Providers	Learn More
Blue Cross Blue Shield
	4.5 STAR RATINGS	EPO, HMO	1.5 million+ healthcare providers	Learn More
United Healthcare

The Best Small Business Health Insurance for Owners Options

Small business owners can buy health insurance for their employees through approved insurance companies with the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP).

Getting insurance through the SHOP Marketplace allows employers to offer health plans from multiple insurance companies and qualifies them for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit, which can help with the cost of providing coverage.

Your business must meet these requirements to qualify for the SHOP tax credit:

• Fewer than 25 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees
• Average employee salary is about $56,000 per year or less
• Pay at least 50% of your full-time employees’ premium costs
• Offer SHOP coverage to all full-time employees

Small business owners can also work with a health insurance broker who conducts all plan research and comparisons to find the best plan for your business at no additional charge. Or they can buy directly from a health insurance company.

If you buy coverage through the ACA marketplace, plans are organized by “metal” tiers: bronze, silver, gold and platinum. The tiers differ by premiums and out-of-pocket costs. For instance, bronze and silver plans have low premiums but higher deductibles and coinsurance. Gold and platinum plans have high premiums but lower out-of-pocket costs.

Employers have flexibility in which type of plans they choose to offer their employees.

How Much Does Health Insurance for Small Business Cost?

The average cost for small business owners is $612 per employee per month and $1,274 for family coverage per month, according to Kaiser Family Foundation’s 2023 Employer Health Benefits Survey.

The exact cost depends on multiple factors, including previous health insurance claims. For instance, a year of high employee healthcare costs could lead to higher health insurance rates set by the insurance company the next year.

How To Get Health Insurance for a Small Business

You have several options when it comes to searching for the right plan options for your small business:

• Do your own footwork: Small business owners can sort through group health insurance options from different insurance companies to compare prices and services and enroll in a plan that meets their needs. Health insurance companies typically offer multiple plans for small businesses. You can see plan choices and costs by plugging a minimal amount of information on the ACA marketplace website.
• Work with an insurance broker: Insurance brokers know the ins and outs of health insurance plans, as well as state and federal requirements. Just be sure you’re working with an independent or agnostic broker who will show you all plans available to you to best meet your needs.
• Explore the SHOP Marketplace: At Healthcare.gov, you’ll find helpful calculation tools and clear choices for high-quality group insurance plans.

Methodology for group health insurance for small business Owners

We analyzed 84 data points about coverage and quality for seven large health insurance companies to determine the best health insurance providers for small businesses owners. Our ratings are based on:

• Complaints made to state insurance departments (30% of score): We used complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
• Plan ratings from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (30% of score): The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) is an independent, nonprofit organization that accredits health plans and produces ratings based on specific metrics, including patient experience, prevention, treatment, overall rating of the health plan and rating of care.
• Average silver plan deductible (20% of score): The deductible is how much you have to pay for healthcare in a year before the health plan begins picking up a portion of the costs. Companies with health plans that had low deductibles got more points.
• Breadth of health plans (10% of score): Health insurance companies may offer up to four types of plan benefit designs (PPO, HMO, EPO and POS). Companies that offered more types of plans got more points.
• Metal tier offerings (10% of score): The ACA marketplace has four metal tier levels. We gave points to companies that offered more tier plan options.