One of the goals of the Affordable Care Act is to get more young people insured. It attempts to do so on two different fronts: By making it easier for grown children to stay covered on their parents’ plan, and by making it more affordable for young adults to afford coverage in their twenties.
Parents’ Plan
Under the law, insurance companies are required to insure adult children on their parents’ plan until the age of 29 at the latest: Continue reading Young People Have Options under the ACA
There have been significant challenges with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. With many different factors to consider for individuals, families and business owners, it’s no wonder people have questions and concerns.
Background
Health insurance rates began to increase in earnest during the 1990s. Since then, insurance companies have struggled to keep their premiums as low as possible. To do that, they began to offer plans with deductibles for certain services. When rates again started to climb, insurance carriers started experimenting with some novel ideas geared at keeping costs down for the employer.
Continue reading Must-Know Facts Regarding the Affordable Care Act
Companies looking to attract the best and the brightest need to offer incentives to increase the quality of their prospective employees. One way to do this is to offer higher salaries than competitors or propose additional benefits. Of course, many benefits, like health insurance, can be prohibitively expensive, especially for a small or medium-size business. Here are 3 benefits you can offer your employees that will give them broad and appreciated benefits at a relatively low cost to your business:
Many clients are dismayed by the rising costs of their insurance coverage. A common question I am asked is:
“If I didn’t file a single claim this year, why would my insurance company raise my rates?”
There is no one answer to this relevant question. Many factors go into determining how much insurance companies charge for coverage. Like other markets, the global insurance market is cyclical and alternates between periods known as soft and hard markets.
Continue reading Why Your Insurance Premiums Are Getting Pricier and What You Can Do About It
Open enrollment for the New York SHOP Exchange begins October 1, 2013 as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). To ensure that the SHOP Exchange is utilized by the people who need it, employers are required to notify their employees about the existence of the Exchange by way of notices within their respective states.
As part of The Affordable Care Act (ACA), New York State has set up the New York State Health Benefit Exchange to connect New Yorkers with health insurance. Within the Exchange, a program called the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) administers the plan to small businesses.
Insurance brokers will play a major role in helping small business owners implement the new rules. You can continue using your current licensed agent or broker to buy health insurance in the SHOP and the premiums you pay will be the same. Some of the things an insurance broker can do for you include:
Applying for insurance for your employees
Reviewing and comparing price, coverage, quality and other important features
Choosing a plan that works for your budget, business and employees
Will the Exchange make coverage more affordable for small businesses?
The answer is yes. The Exchange will lower the cost of health insurance for small businesses because it will spread the administrative costs across more employers and it will offer more small business tax credits to eligible employers. New York state expects that the overall cost for small businesses will be reduced by 5%. Continue reading NY SHOP Exchanges: Top Questions & Answers
The Insurance Pro 