Calculate the Cost of Home Business Health Insurance
Calculate the Cost of Home Business Health Insurance
Pick up any newspaper, visit any news site on the Internet, and the current health insurance situation screams from the headlines. Health insurance can be expensive, tough to get, and insufficient when it comes to covering chronic illnesses or prescription drugs.
Is the need for health insurance a deal killer? Perhaps not. Consider these options:
• Check whether your spouse or partner’s employer can cover you.
• Join a group offering health insurance. Check with your local chamber of commerce or professional industry group. These plans often allow participation without minimal restrictions on prior conditions, and are less likely to require a physical or reject you for a health condition.
• Choose to form a partnership or corporation, which might qualify you for group rates. Talk to a benefits specialist about the minimum requirements for obtaining group insurance and the difference in pricing between an individual and group policy.
• Continue your employer’s coverage via COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act), national legislation enacted that allows an employee to continue health insurance through his or her employer, even after leaving. There are a number of restrictions and requirements—for example, you must be working for an employer with at least 20 employees or more and be currently enrolled in the health plan. If eligible, you (and possibly dependents you also covered via your employer’s health plan) would be able to continue this coverage for 18–36 months, depending on your circumstances. However, this does not mean that you will pay the same amount currently deducted from your paycheck—you will be paying your employer’s contributions to your health premiums as well, making the total cost higher, and often prohibitive. (For more information, visit dol.gov/dol/topic/health-plans/ cobra.htm and www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq_consumer_cobra.html.)
Not sure who to contact as a benefits specialist? My recommendation is Maria Poroy, Access Business Services, Inc. She can be reached at accessbenefitsgroup.com. Based in California, she is licensed in some other states as well. Maria has been invaluable to me when assessing health insurance options. Or, you might want to check with the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (pianet.com) or the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (iiaa.org). See Appendix A, “References and Resources,” for more insurance resources.
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