Health insurance is one of the most important benefits employers provide to employees in that employees depend on and use their health benefits frequently. As the cost of providing this benefit often represents a significant part of most group medical plans, it is important to distinguish the different types. (back to top)

Over 55% of all businesses offer dental insurance either totally or partially paid by the employer. All dental plans emphasize preventive care while many provide coverage for major procedures and orthodontic. (back to top)

Another new, evolving and popular employee benefit is vision care. Vision plans can be either voluntary or employee-paid. (back to top)

Group Life insurance and Accidental Death and Dismemberment are incorporated in most employee benefit plans. The amounts can vary widely from employer to employer but most often you will see two formulas for the amount of benefit:

• A percentage of an employee's annual income typically 1, 1, or 2 times.
• A classed approach with different amounts for each class, typically including:
  • Owners
  • Officers and Management
  • Supervisors and all remaining employees. (back to top)

Disability benefits are payments that provide income when an employee can no longer work due to an illness or accident. Short term disability covers a percentage of an employee's income (typically 60% to a weekly maximum benefit) to a maximum duration of 13 to 26 weeks. Long-term disability coverage normally will provide benefits to age 65 or social security retirement age while providing 60% of an employee's monthly income to some specified amount. Contract language and definitions of disability can vary widely from carrier to carrier and be liberal to stringent. Be aware, many employers and employees have been hurt by not understanding the ramifications of the contract language in the policy they purchased. (back to top)

Long-term care can include a broad range of services, provided in any setting outside a hospital. It might be help with simple daily tasks like bathing or dressing. It may also include skilled care in your home, an assisted living facility, some other community resources or a nursing facility. (back to top)

Self-funding also referred to as Self Insured, is a common method of financing employee benefit plans. This means that the organization retains the risk. However, the insurance company still performs many of the activities required to maintain management of the benefits. The primary advantages include capturing favorable claims expenses, avoiding state-mandated benefits, and having greater flexibility in managing benefit plans. This product is usually attractive to large firms with many employees. (back to top)

Unlike your self-funded or self-insured plans, the insurance company retains all the risk under fully-insured medical plans. Groups are usually broken into small groups two to ninety nine and large groups of over one hundred. The small groups are rated based on demographics and how they compare to a rating pool. The large groups are rated based on their experience (claims vs premium). There are many plan options to choose from. (back to top)

Deferred Compensation is more of an individual agreement than a plan. The primary focus is on the aspect of deferring income and secondarily on the aspect of retirement income. Deferred Compensation helps to spread out the receipt of income beyond the executive's prime working life and lowers the tax bracket. The agreement usually covers more than one executive. (back to top)

Also known as Flexible Benefit Plans provide more efficiency in plan design and provide benefits at a more reasonable cost. These plans provide employees with some choice in the type and amounts of benefits they receive. Some employers have established benefit programs which allow their employees pre-specified employer dollars to purchase benefits among a number of available options. Most large employers offer full-fledged Cafeteria Plans. Many small employers offer premium-conversion plans and flexible spending accounts to save tax dollars. (back to top)

Contact: Jill Age
Email: jage@taylorjohnsongroup.com
Phone: 757-468-6100
Direct Line: 757-963-8602
Fax: 757-963-8600

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