Who we help
Business owners
Participation rules, contribution models, and a renewal process that starts before the increase arrives.
Can I offer benefits without committing to a cost I cannot control?
Owners of small Florida businesses ask the same two questions in the same order. Can I get a plan at all, and what will it cost me every month for the next three years. The first is a rules question and the second is a design question, and they are answered differently.
Getting a plan is about participation and contribution. Most small-group carriers require a minimum share of eligible employees to enrol, commonly around 70% after valid waivers, and a minimum employer contribution toward the employee-only premium, commonly around 50%. Employees who waive because they have a spouse's plan, a parent's plan or Medicare are usually removed from the calculation, which is how a five-person shop with two waivers still qualifies.
Controlling the cost is about the contribution model. A percentage model ties your cost to the premium, so renewals hit you directly. A defined contribution model, a flat dollar amount per employee per month, caps your exposure and makes budgeting predictable, but passes increases to staff. Neither is right in the abstract. We show the payroll cost of each at your actual headcount and let you choose with the numbers in front of you.
The order to do this in
- Build the censusDate of birth, zip and coverage tier for every eligible employee, plus who already has other coverage. Every quote starts here.
- Run the participation testEligible headcount, valid waivers, resulting percentage. We know before quoting which carriers will accept the group.
- Price two contribution modelsPercentage of employee-only premium against a flat defined contribution, with the monthly company cost and the employee cost side by side.
- Hold enrolment meetingsOn site or by webinar, in English and Spanish, with one-to-one time. Participation improves sharply when someone explains it properly.
- Start the renewal 90 days outMarket the group before accepting an increase. Late marketing is why small employers accept renewals they should have challenged.
What we check before naming a plan
- How many employees are eligible, and how many will actually enrol?
- How many will waive, and do they have other creditable coverage?
- What can the company commit to per employee per month, for three years?
- Do you want to fund dependent coverage, or offer it employee-paid?
- Do you need dental and vision, and can they be voluntary?
- Are you approaching the applicable large employer threshold of 50 full-time equivalents?
Where this goes wrong
Quoting before testing participation
A beautiful quote for a group that cannot meet participation is wasted work. We test first.
Choosing a percentage model without modelling renewals
A 12% increase on a percentage model lands on the company. On a defined contribution model it does not. Know which you are signing up for.
Skipping the enrolment meeting
Employees who do not understand the plan waive it, and waivers put participation at risk. Twenty minutes of explanation protects the whole arrangement.
Accepting the renewal letter as final
It is an opening position. Groups marketed 90 days out routinely land somewhere better.
The coverage lines that usually apply
Group employee benefits
Medical, dental and ancillary lines for small employers, with participation rules and contribution models explained.
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Life insurance
Term, permanent and final-expense cover, sized against an actual obligation rather than a rule of thumb.
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Critical illness and supplemental
Policies that pay cash directly to you when a diagnosis or a hospital stay also stops your income.
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Dental, vision and hearing
Standalone cover for the three things Original Medicare does not pay for at all.
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Questions at this stage
Most Florida small-group carriers will write a group with at least two enrolling employees, subject to participation rules. An owner-only arrangement generally is not eligible for small-group coverage.
You must offer dependent coverage but are generally not required to contribute to it. Many small employers fund employee-only and let staff buy up.
An employer with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees, which brings the federal employer shared-responsibility rules into play. We flag it well before you cross the line.
No. Broker compensation is already built into filed small-group rates. Going direct does not make the plan cheaper.
Call and ask us anything. Nothing is sold on the phone.
Twenty minutes with someone who will ask for your doctor list before naming a plan. If the right answer is the plan you already have, that is what you will hear.
(727) 555-0241Mon - Thu 8:30 am - 5:30 pm · Friday 8:30 am - 3:00 pm · TTY 711 · Se habla español
No cost to you, ever. We are compensated by carriers, not by the people we advise.