Small businesses are hard pressed in these economic times to keep costs under control. This is true for Silkin Management Group clients (all small business owners) and any other business owner who is attempting to run a profitable business. It seems like it is only the federal government who doesn’t have to control their bottom line while those of us running a business are constantly on the alert for ways to save money.
Along those lines I thought I would pass along to Silkin Management Group clients and readers of our various Silkin Management Group blog sites some information on controlling health care costs which are often a significant expenditure for small businesses. I found this information in an article from Forbes magazine which you can access here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/roblynch/2012/01/05/ten-ways-small-businesses-can-lower-healthcare-costs-and-hire-more-people-in-2012/ I will summarize the key points of the article and, if you are interested, you can get the full details by using the above link.
• Combine your pool of employees with other businesses: The more people you have in an insurance plan, the lower your costs will be. You can check with other employers that you know to see if they want to go in with you for an insurance plan. Contact friends, associates and any other people you know who employee a group of workers and attempt to put a combination plan together. This article points out that you can check out Professional Employer Organizations who provide services such as payroll and employee benefits and see if they would negotiate a plan for all or some of their clients. This would be a great service for them to provide that could significantly cut down their client’s health care costs.
• Shop, shop, shop. When looking for the most cost effective health care plan, you have to shop and compare many different plans. Just as you would not likely buy a new car without researching for types, benefits and costs of comparable cars, you should not automatically renew a plan or buy a new plan without doing due diligence. As the article points out, use a broker to help speed things along and, if the broker doesn’t provide multiple quotes, find another one.
In following articles on our Silkin Management Group blog sites we will offer up several more ways to control health care costs.
Dave McKevitt
Silkin Management Group Consultant
For more information about Silkin Management Group, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com
