In today’s episode, we have a very special guest, Andrea Murphrey. Andrea is an employee benefits consultant at Capitol Health Management in Sacramento. Andrea is here to talk about all things health benefits for small businesses.

Today we talk about some regulations that come into play when you need to offer health benefits to your employees. Andrea shares her wisdom on how to get started, the costs involved and some other valuable things every small business owner should know before offering a health benefits package in their business.

 

 

Show Notes

[02:07] Andrea’s story – Andrea shares how she got started with her 30-year career in employee benefits consulting.

[03:38] When are you required to offer health benefits – Andrea explains when a small business is required to offer health benefits to employees and the related regulation, the Affordable Care Act.

[05:09] Full time & part-time employees – What happens when you have a pool of full time and part-time employees and how to know if you are required to offer health benefits.

[08:08] How to manage different plans – Andrea explains your options when your employees want to select different plans and the process and costs associated with it.

[11:05] Health Savings Accounts & Flex Spending Accounts – Grant and Andrea discuss the pros and cons of the 2 types of accounts.

[15:33] Can HASs and FSAs coexist? – Grant asks Andrea how to make use of both types at once.

[17:00] Why premiums rise so much year to year? – Andrea explains the reasons behind the increase in premiums.

[21:13] How to offer a decent benefits package – Andrea talks about ways for small businesses to offer a good benefits package without paying out the years.

[28:48] Common misconceptions – Andrea shares some of the biggest misconceptions she has seen among small business owners over her long career.

[32:00] Going through the exchange versus working with a broker – Grant and Andrea discuss the pros and cons of these two methods of obtaining coverage.

[40:54] Current state of the Affordable Care Act – Grant asks Andrea about the changes to the Affordable Care Act made by the current administration.

[44:55] What else you should know about health benefits – Andrea share what she would most like people to know about before you see a professional like her.

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