EXPERTS LANE n SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Taking Care of
Our Work Families
By Malaya Dantzler-Bryan
I
f you turn on the news, listen to pod-
casts, or frequent any political web-
sites, it becomes quickly apparent that
healthcare is a lightning rod of a topic in
our country. It seems to be at the forefront
of debate, both in the political realm as
well as the business world. No matter what
your political views are, however, I don’t
think anyone would argue that health in-
surance coverage is an essential compo-
nent of growing your business.
While the legal mandate requires that you
must cover your employees if your staff
exceeds fifty people, many small busi-
nesses operate with a significantly smaller
staff. So why would you consider paying
the hefty costs of health insurance if, for
instance, your company carries a small
staff of ten?
credit (if you have less than 25 employ-
ees) and your employees are happy as
they have a say in selecting their insur-
ance plan.
I am by no means an insurance expert,
and I strongly recommend that you work
with a licensed insurance professional
while making your decision. However,
here are a few options to consider when
trying to make this important decision for
your business. • Private Health Exchange – This is a pri-
vatized health exchange that works sim-
ilarly to the SHOP marketplace. You will
not receive the same tax benefits as with
the SHOP marketplace, but these op-
tions are more competitively priced and
are often a higher quality insurance
plan. These programs often allow your
employees to spend pre-tax dollars on
their insurance which is another great
benefit.
• Small Business Health Options Program
(SHOP) – This program is a part of the
Affordable Care Act. Each state runs
their own SHOP marketplace with assis-
tance from the federal government. You
essentially filter through different levels
of plans: bronze, silver, gold, and plat-
inum. These categories are indicative
of the plan’s price, not their quality. Once
you select a level your employees can
select their own plan that works best for
them. This is an everyone wins program:
you should receive a substantial tax • Direct Purchase – This is what I like to
call “the old-fashioned way.” You will
need to put in a lot of research up front
to select the provider that you want for
your company. In this option you, as the
business owner, take on all the respon-
sibility of selecting a plan for your em-
ployees, as well as filing all the required
paperwork. This may be a good option
if you know someone in the insurance
business, but be advised that you may
end up paying more for a less than ideal
plan.
8
IBA Success Magazine
n
VOL 5, Issue 3
Ultimately, only you can make the deci-
sion on what is best for your staff. You are
not required by law to carry health insur-
ance unless you have over 50 employees.
While you may not legally be obligated to
provide insurance, it is an essential step in
growing your small business. At the end
of the day, you spend more time with your
staff than you do your family. My advice is
to think of them as your work family, and
take care of them as such.
Malaya Dantzler-Bryan
is an expert in small
business development
with over twenty years
experience in assisting
small and disadvan-
taged businesses. Her
passion for helping "the underdog" led her
to open her own business where she cham-
pions the rights of small businesses across
the state of Florida.
Small Business Contracting Source, Inc.
www.sbcsinc.com
TOP:
Studies show that employers that offer
health insurance attract better candidates,
are better equipped to retain employees,
as well as improve your productivity with
healthier employees. There is also the
added benefit of potential tax credits and
deductions that come with covering small
business health insurance.