This year has been especially challenging for practice owners ... and we don’t need to tell you why. What we do want to make clear is that we can make things a bit easier on you as you’re thinking about group health insurance choices for the coming year.

We all know that for individuals, health insurance renewals and changes happen during the November and December calendar months. But if you’re a practice owner or manager, your group health insurance can renew at any time throughout the year. Whether your plan is up for renewal, or you’re offering group benefits for the first time, we want you to know that TMA Insurance Trust can help you year-round. We do the research, look for superior options, and always provide the best in service. Read on to see how your practice can benefit from getting assistance from our team.

THE CLOCK IS TICKING

Consider a far-fetched scenario: What would happen if tomorrow morning, you walked in to your office and no one on your staff showed up for work. No one to greet patients. No one to answer phones, no one to to assist you with exams and procedures.

What if, without notice, you had to hire brand new employees. How long would it take to train them? To get them familiar with your procedures, your patients, your ways of doing things?

Of course, that’s unrealistic. But most medical practice owners would probably agree – without the support of their well-trained, efficient, enthusiastic employees their practice would barely function.

Health Insurance Open Enrollment has begun and is only open for a brief time: until December 15. Now is the time for Texas physicians to make important health insurance decisions for themselves, their families, and any of their practice staff. TMA Insurance Trust advisors are ready to help you find the right group coverage and assist you with health insurance enrollment before the deadline.

With the new Affordable Care Act Employer Mandate, companies with 50 or more employees are obligated to offer group health benefits. However, many smaller medical practices are also opting to offer healthcare benefits for their staff. This could be due to recent compelling statistics that show a direct correlation between quality benefits and employee retention.

Healthcare is one of the most expensive benefits you can offer employees. As a medical practice, employees often assume they will receive healthcare benefits.

However, health care comes at a cost. According to Kaiser Family Foundation survey, the average annual cost of a single premium per enrolled employee for employer-based health insurance in Texas is a total of $5,386, with an employer contribution of $4,251.

That’s a pretty sizable amount of money to be spending towards health insurance alone. So how can you spend less on health insurance, but still have quality coverage? By leveraging the benefits of HSA, HRA and FSA.

As a Texas physician, owning a medical practice not only offers the opportunity to help heal patients, but it also gives you a chance to run your own business. While owning a practice is both exciting and rewarding, it does come with a related set of challenges such as operating expenses. One of the greatest operating expenses your practice will endure is providing group insurance and/or health benefits for your employees.