The Affordable Care Act has forced all of us to adapt. And we understand what you’re up against in the coming months as the majority of your customers renew their group coverage. You’ll be facing long hours, tight timelines and working with even tighter budgets.
SBAM can help make your life as an agent easier. We have been working closely with agents and their small business customers for decades. From consolidated billing and enrollment to flexible plan administration, we offer our members quality programs that take the hassle out of managing benefits for their employees.
Offer our sponsored BCBSM/BCN plans to your customers and they’ll receive:
- Convenient consolidated billing statement.
- Help with enrollment, additions and deletions, and ordering ID cards.
- FSA, HSA and HRA administration to help ease the pain when moving to a plan with higher deductibles.
- Life, disability, accident and critical illness coverage to enhance their benefit package.
- Affordable, personalized COBRA administration that keeps them compliant.
- And remember that if their renewal has resulted in a benefit change, a new summary plan description is required. With SBAM, your client will receive a Free customized Summary Plan Description that includes all changes.
Small business owners are facing tough decisions regarding their employee benefits. The average SBAM member will invest over $9,000 per employee in the coming year on health insurance alone. They have a lot to consider and should think deeply about the reasons why they offer insurance to their employees. Is it to attract and retain top talent, cover their own family members, reduce absenteeism, or take advantage of tax credits?
In a letter that will arrive at your customer’s place of business next week, we’re urging our members to share their benefits philosophy with you. Understanding their philosophy toward employee benefits will help you direct them to the plans that will best meet their needs and their budget. And, to help them understand the Affordable Care Act, we suggest members visit our exclusive SBAM Decision Point online tool. Decision Point includes a complete timeline for ACA implementation, full-time equivalent employee (FTE) calculator, tax credit subsidy calculator, a full explanation of the employer mandate and individual mandate, list of potential penalties, and a guide to choosing health Care. To help, we are making SBAM Decision Point free to all insured members. As an active writing agent with SBAM, you also have access to Decision Point. Click here to log in.
Please call or email us for more information about how we can help you survive the coming months.
Hub Copp
Director of Agent Relations, SE and Mid Michigan
(248) 207-5377
hub.copp@sbam.org
Jeff Thomas
Director of Agent Relations, West and Northern Michigan
(517) 242-3050
Kellie Neirynck
Director of Marketing
(800) 362-5461
kellie.neirynck@sbam.org