Health Insurance for Your Small Business
Group Vision Explained
Thinking about offering vision insurance to your employees but not sure where to start? Our basic guide below attempts to explain some of the key points about small business vision plans and offers some things to consider as you make your decision.
Should I Offer Vision Insurance to My Employees?
Our answer to this question is the same as it was to the question about whether to offer dental insurance: “Yes, but…” What we mean is that offering vision insurance is a great benefit, but offering health insurance is more important. First, not having health insurance is much more risky than not having vision insurance. Second, if you suffer an injury or disease to your eye(s), regular health insurance will often cover your diagnosis and treatment.
Having said that, offering vision insurance is a great way to make your business stand out from the crowd and to attract and keep top employees. In fact, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, less than 30% of American employees receive vision insurance as part of their compensation package. Also, most employees are not expecting to get much more than a basic plan, and basic vision plans are not expensive. As a savvy business person, you know how expensive it can be to recruit, retain, and sometimes replace top talent. Comparatively, offering a decent benefits package can look downright cheap.
Basic Group Vision Insurance Is Not Expensive
As far as benefits go, offering vision coverage to your employees is an inexpensive way to keep your employees happy and productive. Plus, you can get group vision coverage for less than you probably think. You can expect to pay as little as $50 to $70, per employee, per year for an average, basic plan through an insurance carrier, HMO or otherwise. Employees will expect you to contribute anywhere from 25% to 75% of their annual premium.
Can We Get Vision Insurance through Our Business’s Health Insurance Provider?
Some group medical insurance providers do also offer vision insurance as an add-on to their regular services. These vision plans tend to be very narrow, but can also be convenient, as the vision insurance premiums are simply added on to the employee’s health insurance premiums.
What Does Group Vision Insurance Cover?
Like most insurance, vision plans vary in what they offer, and the more you pay, the more benefits you get. However, there are some key services that most basic plans will offer—and a typical small business does not have extra cash to burn on a big, fancy plan anyway. Below are some of those services offered by most basic vision plans.