Employee Medical Insurance Myths

April 4th, 2011

Employee Medical insurance has many benefits to both the employer and employee.  The most important of these is reducing the number of days lost to sickness each year and getting the employee back to work more quickly because their treatment has been completed earlier than on the NHS.  However, there are many misconceptions about group health insurance policies that may put bosses off from investing in something that can be very worthwhile for their businesses.

One of the most common mistakes is that managers believe all health insurance policies cost the same. This of course varies according to many factors, such as the general age and size of the workforce as well as the type of health cover. Cash plan medical insurance policies, like those offered by Freedom Healthnet, can work out more cost effective than traditional plans and give more choice to the employee.  The employee can choose where they would like to receive their treatment, for instance. Traditional comprehensive medical insurance premiums can also vary wildly.  This can depend upon the options that are selected and the excess that is chosen.  Often by talking to the insurer, it is possible to work the cover so that it provides what is needed whilst maintaining an eye on costs.

Some business owners are led to think that they will have to use a broker in order to get the best deal for them, but this can be expensive and unnecessary. Quotes for private medical insurance are easily available online.  If advice is needed, independent brokers are available to help for little or no cost.  Freedom Healthnet, for example, is a direct insurer of comprehensive or cash plan medical cover and can provide the best price direct.  Freedom can also do a market comparison so it can provide quotes from competitors and help your company to get the best premium and best insurer for them.   This may or may not be Freedom.

On the other hand, some corporations think they know everything that there is to know about private medical insurance when in fact they are missing out on vital knowledge that could save them a lot of money. The industry is constantly changing and it is hard to keep up with the latest information with a busy business to run. It is worthwhile enquiring into a new quote regularly and taking advice from independent brokers, such as Healthnet Services to ensure that the company’s group health cover is both cost efficient and gives the most relevant benefits.

Find out more about employee medical cover and get a company insurance quote online or call 0800 999 2013 and quote ‘WEB’ to ask for a market comparison.

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Employers Responsible For Workers Health?

September 22nd, 2010

According to a recent survey conducted by cash plan and medical insurance provider Simplyhealth many employers feel they are jointly responsible for an employees health. This can only be a good thing for employees who may see an increase in the company medical insurance benefits that are provided in their place of work.

Another recent report by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) suggests that much ill health is attributed to the workplace and that health and safety issues are at the root of the problem.

The report states:

‘In recent years there has been a growing belief that the workplace is a much safer place than it was, most workers are at little risk, and that as a result much of the regulation that we have is unnecessary. It is this perception that has, in part, led to a growing tendency to dismiss health and safety as being about only factories and mines and which has fed calls for regulations, or enforcement, to be reduced.’

According to the TUC report last year:

• 28,692 major worker injuries were reported
• 105,222 workers had to take at least three days off work due to injury
• 551,000 new cases of illness were caused by work last year
• 1,200,000 who are currently off work say that the reason for their absence is work related
• there have been big rises in musculoskeletal disorder
• there have been big rises in mental health issues
• 415,000 people suffered from a work-related stress illness last year

These statistics show that there is clearly a case for greater employer responsibility for employee health in the work place.

The survey says that a quarter of employers said they wanted to increase the health care benefits the people working for them receive and out of the 257 HR managers surveyed 64% agreed that companies shared responsibilities for employee health with individuals, the government and communities. However nearly a quarter felt that it was solely the individual’s responsibility.

James Glover, Simplyhealth’s corporate sales and marketing director, said: ‘It’s apparent that companies are seriously having to consider the role they play in supporting employees and indeed, the greater good.’

The report also highlighted areas in which HR managers did not feel responsibility. These included obesity problems and cessation of smoking.

Freedom Healthnet provides company medical insurance and offers great flexibility by offering policies to suit companies with anything from three employees up to large corporations.

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Tax to rise on Health & Medical Insurance

August 8th, 2010

There is a planned 1% rise in insurance premium tax (IPT) that will affect all health / medical insurance policies from 4 January next year.

The government has proposed raising IPT from 5 % to 6% from the next year and it expected that this will be confirmed in the forthcoming Finance Bill.  The insurance industry, however, is worried that this is just the start of hikes in the tax on insurances and that the government is moving towards a consistent level of taxation across all sectors of the economy.

Health and medical insurance has benefited from a low level of taxation, which has helped to keep it affordable.  Health insurance is a necessity for many people to ensure that they can get treated promptly and get back to work swiftly, without having to take a loss in earnings.  However  some would argue that it is a luxury item and be taxed as such.

There is currently discussion within the industry about how insurance providers will handle this uplift in IPT.  Will it affect holders of an existing policy?  Will they pay the increased IPT rate as from 4th January, creating an administration nightmare for insurance companies who would have to collect increased premiums from clients OR would the increased IPT rate only come into effect upon renewal after 4th January and on new policies from 4th January?

Additionally, with an increase in IPT on the cards, will this affect the decisions by employers to have a company health insurance scheme?  Will that extra 1% for corporates with significant numbers of employees mean the difference between scrapping the scheme or continuing it in these challenging times?

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