NY Small Group Health Insurance Federal Open Enrollment Period runs November 15 – December 15 for January 1 effective dates.
If you are looking for NY small group health insurance, then you might be happy to hear that you can enroll during the yearly Federal Open Enrollment Period (FOE) for small businesses between November 15 and December 15 for January 1 effective dates.
What is the Federal Open Enrollment Period?
Normally, you need 60 – 75% of your employees to opt into a group health insurance plan, but during the FOE period that requirement is waived, and you can sign up even if only one person is insured.
Why is the 2022 Federal Open Enrollment Period for small businesses important to you?
When you stay within the small business FOE window, you will not be required to meet the normal participation requirements for small groups. This means you can have a group of 20 employees with only 1 employee enrolling. This is good news for businesses that otherwise want to offer coverage to their employees but would otherwise not be eligible because of participation requirements.
Is small business health insurance more affordable than individual health insurance?
Small business health insurance can be a more affordable option for both employers and employees. According to the eHealth Small Business Health Insurance Report, small business health plans have lower average costs per-person compared to individual market coverage:
In 2018, the average small business health plan premium per-person was 7 percent lower than the average premium for an individual health plan ($409 vs. $440).
The average deductible for small business health insurance plans was 31 percent ($1,438) lower than the average deductible for individual health insurance coverage ($3,140 vs. $4,578).
Why should employers consider offering health insurance coverage to employees?
Overall, the top reason cited by small business owners for offering health insurance to their employees was the strategic hiring and recruiting advantage provided by group health insurance coverage. These advantages include:
offering medical benefits helps entice the best employees to work for you
providing benefits in this tight labor market helps differentiate you from the rest of the competition and retain qualified workers
healthy employees are more productive and less likely to be out sick
paying towards employee health coverage is a deductible business expense
employees can not purchase small group health plans on their own
How to take advantage of the FOE period and enroll during this time?
You will need to research plan options, provider lists, and carriers in advance of the FOE period. You can schedule a free phone or online zoom consultation with us so we can send you rates and options for all downstate NY carriers prior to or during the FOE period.
Then you will have to apply between Nov 15 and Dec 15 with the carrier you decide on. We submit your applications with the carrier and secure your FOE submission date.
One item to keep in mind is that the owner and/or the owner’s spouse can not be the only person to enroll in the plan, even during the FOE period. For more exceptions and explanations to this Owner Only enrollment issue, please check this article.
