Group Benefit

Group benefits are integral to your organization’s support of its employees’ health and wellness and offer valuable compensation beyond direct wages or salaries. In many cases, these incentives and opportunities can directly impact your workplace culture, as well as attraction and retention efforts. However, group benefits can also be complicated and nuanced, making it necessary to work with a qualified benefits professional, such as those at Vanmar Insurance.

What Are Group Benefits?

Group benefits are integral components of most employers’ employee benefits offerings. They may consist of many types of insurance coverage meant to help secure workers’ financial stability while ensuring they and their families can access health care and other essential services when needed. Health insurance, dental and vision coverage, life insurance and disability insurance are all commonly offered by employers and may be invaluable investments for businesses and their workforces.

What Are Examples of Group Health Plans?

Group health insurance is a core component of an attractive employee benefits portfolio. It may provide members with access to various preventive and medical services while offering lower premiums than they might otherwise find on the open market.

A group health policy may come in many forms, including the following:

• Health maintenance organization (HMO)—These plans require members to select a primary care provider responsible for general health care and making referrals to specialists. HMOs often offer lower premiums than other types of plans but limit policyholders to in-network services.
• Preferred provider organization (PPO)—A PPO can provide greater flexibility than HMOs when seeking out-of-network care, although services within the plan’s network will generally offer savings in comparison. PPOs generally offer greater flexibility in exchange for higher premiums and deductibles.
• Point of service (POS)—These arrangements combine elements of HMOs and PPOs by still having policyholders select a primary care physician but allowing opportunities to seek medical services from outside the plan’s network.
• Exclusive provider organization (EPO)—Like POS policies, EPOs can be seen as a hybrid of HMOs and PPOs, as they do not require members to choose a primary care physician or get referrals for specialists, but they do limit coverage to in-network providers.
• High deductible health plan (HDHP)—An HDHP can provide members with lower premiums while establishing greater deductibles that must be met at the time of service. These arrangements are often paired with health savings accounts, which can provide employees with a tax-free way to pay these out-of-pocket expenses.

We’re Here to Help

With a history of serving businesses dating back to 1996, the dedicated team at Vanmar Insurance is well-equipped to help you understand group benefits and health insurance. Contact us today to get started.