OverviewGroup Benefits

Group benefit plans provide financial support for various medical costs of employees and their families. This might include drugs, dental, vision, short and long-term disability, various Extended Health Coverages (EHC), as well as life insurance, accidental death & dismemberment (AD&D) to name a few. A group benefit plan is a way for an employer to invest in the well-being of its employees to ensure the health and financial wellness of them and their families.

There are various components that can be included in a group benefits plan. Here are some of the most common coverages available within these plans:

• Extended Health Coverage
• Dental
• Drugs
• Vision
• Short and Long-Term Disability (STD/LTD)
• Life Insurance
• Accidental Death & Dismemberment

We work with you to create a custom-tailored group benefits plan that’s fit for your company. From small to large businesses, our experts will walk you through a free, no obligation quote to see if we’re the right fit for you and your team!

Many small business owners might believe that they are too small to even have a group

benefit plan in place. Others believe that it might be too expensive, even if they technically could have a plan in place. Small businesses are great candidates for group benefit plans. Even if your company has 5 employees or less, you have multiple options available to you, whether it be a traditional group benefits plan or a Health Spending Account (HSA), or a combination of the two.

Group benefit plans are a great way to attract and retain the top talent in your space. Employees see a great value in having a plan to help reduce the financial burden of various medical expenses for themselves and their families. Your company can choose to share the premium cost with the employees, or cover it entirely, either way, they are saving from covering it personally.

The value of a group benefit plan for your business is that the premiums paid for the plan are tax-deductible to your business, just like other business expenses. This allows you to reduce your taxes owed on an annual basis, all while increasing the morale and overall well-being of your team.

A traditional benefit plan allows you to select the specific coverages that you would like to provide for your employees. This can include drugs, dental, vision, life insurance, accidental death & dismemberment, short and long-term disability, and Extended Health Care (EHC). You can select the coverages that you and your employees value the highest, and even choose to add other coverages in the future.

If selecting the coverage options is not something you want to focus on or spend the time reviewing, we also have the option for a more simplified plan called a Health Spending Account (HSA). An HSA plan allows you to allot a certain amount of total coverage to each employee, annually. They can then submit claims for the medical expenses against the total value of the coverage. For example, each employee may be provided with $1,000 of coverage per year. They can then submit any eligible expenses (i.e. drugs, dental, vision, etc.) to get reimbursed up to their annual allotment. These types of plans are especially useful for any business that is looking for a simplified plan structure, or looking to compliment an existing group benefits plan with some flexible coverage.

When putting a group benefits plan in place, you also have the ability to add different classes or tiers. Having different classes allows you to increase the coverage for groups of key individuals to reward them for the long-standing value they’ve brought to your organization.

Starting a group plan as a small business doesn’t have to be intimidating if you’re working with the right people – we are here to help you maximize your business’ potential.

As businesses grow from small to mid-sized businesses, the programs for their employees may evolve to support the continued growth. Whether it is internal factors or identifying the competition for quality employees in the marketplace, a group benefit plan is a great way to give your business the advantage. Businesses of this size have a variety of options available to them, and even more to consider as their business expands. It makes it even more important to be working with a trusted advisor to navigate the landscape of traditional group benefit packages as well as Health Spending Accounts (HSA), to ensure the plan is tailored to meet your needs.

As the employment market becomes more competitive, especially for small to mid-sized businesses looking to attract and retain top talent, a benefits plan can make all the difference. For employees, it provides them with financial support to ease the burden of various medical expenses for themselves and their families. Whether your business is covering the entirety of the cost, or the employees are also contributing, it’s still an incredibly valuable program to ensure the satisfaction and health of your team.

Not only is a group benefits plan good for your employees, it’s also beneficial for your

business as well. The premiums contributed by the business towards the plan are tax- deductible, just like your other business expenses. As a result, your business net income is reduced along with your corporate taxes – it truly is a win-win.
Benefits plans are typically comprised of various coverages, which can be selected to meet your needs. Some examples of specific coverages are drugs, dental, vision, life insurance, accidental death & dismemberment, short and long-term disability, and Extended Health Care (EHC). Coverages can be selected to meet the needs of your employees and the investment your company is prepared to make in your team.

Another option available to businesses looking to provide benefits coverage is a Health Spending Account (HSA) plan. An HSA plan differs from the traditional benefits plan, but can be a great compliment or stand-alone plan to offer to employees. Rather than selecting the coverage options, the business allocates an annual dollar amount for each employee. For example, if each employee was provided with $2,500 of coverage each year, they can submit their eligible medical expenses (i.e. drugs, dental, vision, etc.) and get reimbursed up to their annual maximum. An HSA plan can be a simple way to provide flexibility to employees or to compliment a standard group benefits plan.

For many organizations, there may be different levels of seniority or tiers of employees. You also have the ability to customize your group benefits plan to provide greater coverage for more senior or higher ranking employees, rewarding them for their long- standing commitment to your organization.

Finding a benefits plan to meet your needs doesn’t have to be complicated. We are the experts that we can help you compare your options to find the right fit to reward and retain your employees.

Thinking about topping up your group coverage? Consider the following questions.

What are you covered for?
Even if you have group coverage offered by your employer, do you know what that

coverage includes? In most cases, you might be familiar with some of the coverages that you use quite often, but there might be other coverages you don’t know the details of as well. In addition to working with businesses to put group benefit plans in place, we also work with individual clients to review their plans and ensure they understand their coverages and are protected to their satisfaction. A great starting point is a full review of your benefits plan. We will review and summarize the coverages provided by your employer and work to identify areas where you might benefit from additional coverages.

Is it enough?
One of the main areas of a benefits plan where most people overestimate their

coverage is the life insurance. Not all life insurance policies are equal, especially when comparing group coverage to an individual plan. In most cases, group life insurance might be much more limited coverage than the average person would require in today’s day and age. It’s important to not just have life insurance, but to have the right amount of coverage to meet your financial obligations and support your family’s needs.

What if you change jobs?
Another risk of relying exclusively on your group coverage is the fact that it’s tied to

your continued employment with your company. No matter how unlikely or likely it may seem at the current time, there may be a situation in the future where you decide to leave your current employment, whether it’s to pursue owning your own business,becoming an independent sub-contractor, or seeking employment elsewhere, you’ll want to make sure that your insurance plan doesn’t rely exclusively on your continued employment with your existing company, or you might have to pass up that dream opportunity in the future!

What if you retire?
Similar to a situation where you change employers in pursuit of other endeavours, one

day, you may hope to retire. Many benefit plans have maximum ages and coverage limits as their employees’ approach or transition to retirement. If you are concerned about the continuation of certain coverages into retirement, you’d also want to ensure that you’re evaluating your options and understanding how you can ensure your continued protection beyond your working years.