IMPORTANT UNDERWRITING FACTORS IN GROUP HEALTH INSURANCE Participation is a very important factor in underwriting health insurance. No matter the size of an employer, participation in your health plan is extremely important. It’s important to keep participation in your group health plan as high as possible and prevent it from dropping below 50% of total employees or 75% of eligible employees, not including those with a valid waiver. When participation drops below these levels, many insurance companies add a participation load to your rates. Some insurers will not provide a health quote for employers under these participation levels. It is not to your advantage to switch health insurance companies too often. One of the questions underwriters will ask is how many insurance companies you have been with for the past five years. Two is fine, but more than two may limit who will provide a quote! Employer contributions also play a vital role in your rates. Our analysis of benefit clients shows that those who contribute a larger amount toward “employee only” for health insurance have a higher participation, which helps keep overall rates down. Final cost to employees is critical not only for participation but also for affordability compliance under the ACA guidelines to avoid potential penalties. Give your employees options. Employees like to have choices when it comes to employee benefits. They want more than one medical plan to choose from. The “one size fits all” strategy for medical insurance is usually not the best way to go. Telehealth benefits and overall benefit education can play a major role in keeping claims costs down and have an impact on lower medical loss ratios! GADA has an in-house insurance agency that specializes in employee benefits. We would be happy to discuss your employee benefit challenges. Our goal is to provide the most competitive costs, offer top customer service and keep our benefits clients informed. Please contact us if we can help answer any specific insurance questions. You can contact me at (770) 432-1658 x240 or shawn_presnell@gada.com. You can also contact Benefits Specialists Candace McDole at (770) 432-1658 x219 or candace_mcdole@gada.com. 21 THE GENERATOR
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==