The continuing growth in the number of insurance plans where the employer or union assumes all or part of the responsibility for paying claims made the nations employers a principal bearer of the financial risks of illness and non-job-related injury in 1990. Group health insurance is better than individual in most cases- your premium will be lower, and your options greater. If you cannot receive group insurance coverage through your employer, then you'll need to seek out an individual plan.
2 basic group plans:
- fully insured
- MPP (minimum premium plan)
Under fully insured, your employer accepts all the risk for paying your claims.
Under MPP, your employer pays up to a certain specified maximum; after which point, the insurer pays. Most of these plans offer several types of coverage:
- basic coverage
- major medical coverage
- basic, plus major medical coverage
Majority of these plans fall under major medical, and don't contain a basic hospital benefit for hospital related expenses.
Employers Offering Health Insurance
Coverage varies from industry to industry. Most, if not all, state and local government agencies offer health insurance. Goods-producing firms are more likely to provide health benefits than are service-producing firms.
Coverage is less commonly offered by firms employing significant proportions of low-wage workers, that have a large proportion of part-time workers, or that experience high employee turnover.
