Employer Provided Insurance Plans

What is Group Health Insurance? 
 
With group health insurance, a single policy covers the medical expenses of many different people. Unlike individual insurance, where each person's risk potential is evaluated to determine insurability, group health insurance allows all eligible members of the group to be covered by one policy, regardless of their age or physical condition. The premium for group insurance is calculated based on the characteristics of the group as a whole, such as average age and degree of occupational hazard.

What Is Group Life Insurance?

Group life insurance is life insurance that is purchased under a single contract covering a group of people. Typically, the policyowner is an employer or other entity such as a union, and the policy covers the employees or members of the group. Group life insurance may be part of an employee benefit package. Group life insurance is available to companies with as few as 10 employees.

What Is Dental Insurance?
Dental insurance is insurance that provides coverage for services relating to the care and treatment of your teeth and gums. Typically, it provides coverage for some or all of the following dental services:

• Diagnostic procedures
• Semiannual checkups (including cleanings) and periodic X rays
• Procedures that restore teeth
• Oral and maxillofacial surgery (teeth extraction and oral surgery)
• Periodontics (treatment of bone and gum diseases)
• Prosthodontics (fillings, dentures, bridges, and crowns)
• Orthodontics (repositioning of the teeth)
• Oral surgery
• Root canal therapy
  

What Does It Cost?
Dental insurance is typically inexpensive. The annual cost is often less than you spend eating at fast-food restaurants over the course of a year. If you have employer-sponsored dental insurance, the cost to you will be even less because your employer probably pays all or part of the premium.

How Does It Work?
Dental insurance may provide direct payment to the dentist for the dental care and treatment that you receive. Or, you may be required to cover your dental expenses out of pocket at the time of service and then file a claim for reimbursement. It depends on the specific plan. The dental plan may also have a list of preapproved dentists, like a health maintenance organization.

With group dental insurance, deductible and co-payment features usually come into play, though the deductible may not apply to routine cleaning and oral examinations. In addition, you may have to pay a separate coinsurance percentage for orthodontia and certain other procedures. Most plans also place a limit on the total amount of dental benefits that you can receive each year. Finally, if you've just enrolled in a dental plan, be aware that there may be a waiting period before your coverage kicks in.

What Is Vision Care Insurance?
Vision care insurance is insurance that provides coverage for services relating to the care and treatment of the eyes. It typically covers services delivered by an optometrist or ophthalmologist. Depending on the specific plan, some or all of the following services may be covered:

• Yearly eye exams
• Glasses (with an annual limit)
• Contact lenses and fitting (with an annual limit)
• Glaucoma screening

How much does it cost?
Vision care insurance is generally available for a small, nominal annual premium, often as little as $50 a year. What's more, your out-of-pocket cost may be even less if your employer pays all or part of the premium (as many employers do).

How does it work?
Vision care insurance may provide direct payment to the eye care provider for the services you receive. Or, you may be required to cover the charges out of pocket at the time of service and then file a claim for reimbursement. It depends on the specific plan.

Why offer ancillary benefits?
Employees still need oral and vision care.  Offering a health plan is not enough to keep employees healthy.

Research continues to show that dental and vision plans can be effective preventive healthcare tools that may lower medical claims costs in the long run.  Early symptoms of high blood pressure, diabetes and other diseases can be detected in an eye exam before showing up in a physical. 

Health insurance also does not provide income protection in the event of a death.  Life insurance can help employees protect their loved ones by providing a monetary benefit to cover the cost of a funeral or a debt.

Group life insurance has a high-perceived value as well!  According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2010, 96 percent of employees who had access to group life insurance took advatange of it.