However, sometimes a situation arises where an employee may find they have to leave the group plan that was provided for them. The question is, as their employer, what can you do to help the situation?
Reasons Employees May Lose Their Insurance
There are many reasons an employee may need to leave their insurance plan, and they all have to do with the individual’s status as an employee.
- Retirement. Some places of employment are blessed with dedicated employees who will work there until they are ready to retire, but unfortunately, many of the group insurance plans are only available for active employees. When an individual retires, they typically lose the insurance they’ve had for so many years.
- Changing from full-time to part-time hours. Whatever their reason for doing so, when an employee switches from full-time to part-time work, it usually means they will lose their group health insurance.
- Facing job loss. Some employees may face being laid off due to downsizing or lack of work. This would obviously mean that they would no longer have access to their group insurance plan.
Group insurance plans are conditioned on the employee’s full-time status.
What Happens Then?
When an employee loses their insurance, they not only lose access to financial aid for medically necessary services or items, they also lose the peace of mind that having insurance provides. Good employers care about the health and welfare of their workforce, including those who are not working full time.
As the employer, you are not helpless in this situation. There are ways you can be supportive and help your staff gain access to much-needed coverage. The best solution is to assist employees in purchasing a plan for themselves, one that’s hopefully comparable to the coverage they previously had, and will help them continue to offset their healthcare costs.
While you can’t offer these employees coverage through the plan you have for full-time individuals, you can guide them in the right direction.
Getting Them on a New Plan
It’s not as hard as you’d think to come off one plan and to start on another. Many people are intimidated by the idea, thinking that if they have a pre-existing condition or there’s some other factor, this might jeopardize their coverage. This is not necessarily the case.
There are many plans that employees can choose from. If they are coming off an insurance plan, they may be able to obtain a new plan, provided they apply within 60 or 90 days, depending on the insurer. Depending on the level of coverage they are looking for, there are many plans available that can keep healthcare service costs down while helping the employee maintain their health.
While it is not necessarily the employer’s responsibility to help a formerly insured employee find a new plan, it is a decent thing to do. You can do the legwork and look into the numerous plans out there, or you can contact our office today and we can point you in the right direction. We have access to over 35 individual health and dental plans, and will be able to find something to fit the employees’ needs or situation.
Alternatively, if you do find a health insurance provider that you would recommend to your employee, you can give them a brochure or website link and encourage them to contact the provider and set up the plan themselves.
Call Us
Ideally, everyone would have a health insurance plan and no one would have to do without. As the employer, it’s up to you to determine who gets coverage, but inevitably there may be some employees who don’t meet the requirements.
If you are unsure as to how to go about helping your staff with finding a plan, please call us today and we will be happy to assist you. We can help your people figure out what plan to choose, what coverage they may need, and what their budget is, and then we can assist them in actually signing up for the new plan.
Call us today; we’d love to hear from you.
