Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Hey Fletch … I am looking for some advice on health insurance for my team. We provide a high deductible plan for our employees and have contributed a percentage of the deductible into a HSA on behalf of each employee. We got quotes last week for this coming year’s insurance premiums. They went up 123% from this year and will cost the church $140,000 more than last year. Needless to say we are looking into other options. I am wondering if you know of other options. Thanks for any help you can give me.
DRF—That is one of the largest increases I have ever heard of. Check with your agent for a typo! Either you were paying way below market value this year, or it is time to get a new health insurer.
As you work with an insurance agent, have them get bids from other carriers in your area. From an email exchange with you, I learned that you have several bids and that this increase is the lowest of the bids!
You might want to check out GuideStone. I copied your email to a leader at GuideStone. See if they can get someone to help you. I have used GuideStone and continue to find them the most helpful folks around.
Nationwide, the New York Times had a recent article suggesting that health care costs were going to stay about the same, or less, than last year. So I’m surprised at the increase, let alone the amount. I asked the question about rate increases to 70 church leaders at a recent XPastor workshop; most had increases ranging from 10-28%.
Renewals have a short window, so you will need to act fast. Of course, most policies can be cancelled at any time in the contract period. Check on your cancellation process. You could go with your existing provider for a month or two, and then switch to a lower priced carrier.
Please let me know what you find. This is alarming news!
