The short answer: with a group plan, the business picks one plan design and how much of the premium it pays, and everyone enrolls in it. With an ICHRA (a defined contribution), the business sets a fixed monthly allowance and each employee picks their own individual plan, reimbursed up to that amount. Employee-paid (voluntary) benefits sit alongside either one and cost the business nothing to offer. Most small businesses end up with a mix.
The paths, side by side
- A group plan. Employer-sponsored health coverage for your team. The business picks the plan design and how much of the premium it pays, employees enroll (family members too, where offered), and the owner can sit on the same plan. It is quoted for your group, not online, because group pricing depends on your team's census and your state.
- A fixed monthly allowance (ICHRA). The business sets a fixed amount per employee each month. Each employee picks their own individual health plan and is reimbursed up to that amount. You control the budget; they control the plan. It is not one plan everyone shares, and it has setup and documentation rules that vary, so an advisor confirms it fits your team before you commit.
- Employee-paid (voluntary) benefits. Accident, hospital-cash, critical-illness and life coverage employees choose and pay for themselves through payroll, often at group rates they could not get on their own. The business offers it; the business does not fund it. It is not health insurance and does not replace a medical plan.
- Group dental and vision, and group life and disability. Dental and vision are the benefits employees use every year, and often the easiest first benefit to add. Group life and disability give every employee a base amount of life insurance and income protection if someone cannot work because of illness or injury.
What to know before you choose
- "We're too small" is rarely the real answer. You do not have to be a big company to offer real benefits: an ICHRA works at any size, and voluntary benefits ask nothing of the business at all. Size decides which path fits. It almost never decides whether one exists.
- Decide what share the business could pay. The employer share shapes which plans and paths are realistic. There is no wrong answer, and "not sure" is a fine place to start.
- A fixed budget points toward an allowance. If you already have a monthly number per employee in mind, an ICHRA or defined contribution is often the natural fit.
- Where your people live matters. Plan availability and networks are state by state, and a remote employee can change the path.
- Who your people are matters. Eligibility rules generally follow employee type: full-time, a mix of W-2 and 1099, or seasonal. We confirm who can be on which plan.
- Do you want to be on it too? Owners can often sit on the group plan. Owner participation changes the census and often the plan design.
- Think about the paperwork. Enrollment forms, a census spreadsheet, who is eligible when, what happens when someone leaves. We handle enrollment and the changes with you, so the plan does not become a second job.
Picture it
You run a small shop with a handful of people. You have never offered benefits, because it always sounded like something for bigger companies. Then you lose a good candidate. Same pay, same commute, same work, but the other posting had one extra line: "health, dental and vision." A month later, a longtime employee gives notice. She had been on her husband's plan, his job changed, and the family needed coverage you did not offer.
Now picture the other version. You fill out a short discovery sheet: your state, your team, what share you could pay, what you want to offer. An advisor comes back with the paths that fit, maybe a group plan for health with dental and vision, maybe a fixed monthly allowance your people spend on their own plans, with voluntary coverage on top that costs the business nothing. You choose with real numbers for your team, and your next job posting has the benefits line.
Already have a plan?
A renewal is a starting point for a re-shop, not a bill you have to pay. Tell us the month yours lands and we work ahead of it, so you see options before the bill arrives. There is no seasonal deadline for small-business coverage, and group plans can start on the 1st of almost any month once the census is in. See the group health plans available now, or read more in our FAQ.
This is general education, not a guarantee of coverage. Availability, plan designs, eligibility and rates vary by carrier, state and group size, and can change at any time.