Level-Funded Plans

If you've been shopping for group health insurance and feel like fully insured plans keep getting more expensive every year, you're not imagining it. Premium renewals of 10–20% are common — even when your employees barely used their benefits. There's an alternative worth knowing about: level-funded health plans. The Problem With Traditional (Fully Insured) Plans With a standard group health plan, you pay a fixed monthly premium to a carrier. The carrier takes on all the risk.

Choosing the right health insurance funding strategy is one of the biggest decisions a small business can make. Many employers automatically renew the same fully insured plan every year without realizing there may be alternative options that could lower costs and improve flexibility. One of the fastest-growing alternatives is the level-funded health plan. But what’s the difference between fully insured and level-funded plans—and which one makes more sense for your business? W