THE WARNEKE GROUP, LLC

Financial & Insurance Services

The Need for Health Insurance


Most of us would agree that good health is an extremely valuable attribute.  Those in poor health generally have a lower quality of life as well as a reduced ability to work and earn an income.  Good health is frequently the result of biology (the genes you inherit), the life style choices you make (exercise, diet, smoking), and appropriate medical care.


And even the healthiest among us need some medical care.  Regular physician and dental visits are a normal part of maintaining good health.  Accidents, illness, and simply growing older are other reasons medical care is necessary.


Paying For Medical Care


Medical care in the United States is, unquestionably, expensive.  According to statistics compiled by the federal government, over 20% of personal consumption expenditures are directed to medical care.1  For those needing medical care, there are three basic choices:


   • Don’t go: Not seeking medical care when it is needed can result in small, treatable health problems becoming much bigger ones, with sometimes fatal consequences.


   • Pay out-of-pocket: Paying for medical care from your own pocket can quickly exhaust your assets.  Huge medical bills are one reason cited as a cause of personal bankruptcy.


   • Health insurance: Although the premiums can be expensive, for many individuals and families, health insurance is the only practical way to provide needed medical care.


Sources of Health Insurance


There are three broad sources of health insurance in the United States today:


   • Individually owned policies: The individual or family purchases a health policy directly from an insurance company or health maintenance organization.  Individual health policies can be relatively expensive compared to group health insurance.  To obtain quotes for you and/or your family, click here.


   • Group health insurance: Group health insurance is typically provided through an employer or another related group such as a professional association.  The premiums for group health policies tend to be less than those for individually owned policies.


   • Government programs: For those age 65 and older, Medicare provides a base level of health insurance.  Medicaid provides health care for the impoverished.  The federal government has a number of programs to provide medical care to active duty and former military service members.  Some states have individual programs to provide health insurance to low-income individuals and families.


The Choice Is Yours


While health insurance may be expensive, trying to pay medical costs out of your own pocket, or not seeking medical help when needed, can be much more expensive.


1 Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2008. Table No. 655 Personal Consumption expenditures in Current and Real (2000) Dollars, by Type: 1990 to 2005.

Group Employee Benefits

Affordable group health insurance rates, in most states, are available to any company that has two or more employees.  The eligibility requirements may vary geographically.


The number of employees insured under the group health plan may also determine the types of coverage available to the employer, as well as the per-employee premium. Usually, a company with between 2 to 50 employees is classified as a small business and may offer small business health insurance plans.  Many companies have hundreds to thousands of employees and will have health plans customized for them by a health insurance carrier.  Many of these customized plans may include additional benefits that would be excluded from standard issue policies normally included in the small business health insurance plans.

Some large corporations may choose to self-insure and only use the insurance carrier to administer the health plans and benefits.  This is done by placing a sizeable bond with their state and pulling from this account to pay medical claims via the administrating health insurance carrier.  In doing so, the company is assuming the risk of major medical claims and acting as the insurer.

Most health insurance companies in the U.S. will have three classification levels based on the number of enrolled employees on the health plan: 1) small group, 2) mid-size group, or 3) large group.  Although the number of employees that are required to fall into a specific category may be determined by the insurance company or by state legislation, there are common standards for these classifications.

There are many different types of "Employee Benefits" that may be offered to employees.  The most common are:

   Medical & Prescription Drugs,
   
   Dental,   
   
   Vision,
   
   Life insurance & Dependent life insurance,
   
   Short-Term Disability Income,
   
   Long-Term Disability Income,
   
   Section 125 (Cafeteria Plans),
   
   Retirement Plans, and
  
   Voluntary Plans (Life, Cancer, Accident, etc.)

To obtain a quote on any of these coverages, please contact us or download the attached Fact Sheet and Census.  Once completed, please email or fax to 503-699-1934 the Fact Sheet, census (the download or your census form), copy of current invoice and the current plan description. 

Click here to view a video on the basics of health insurance.



Contact us for additional information.