NOACC Plans Offer Lower Cost, Choice, Stability to Small Employers
By Joseph M. LaGuardia, Regional Vice President, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield
As the cost of health care continues to rise, a growing number of businesses and their employees are finding it increasingly difficult to afford health insurance. Small businesses, business advocates like the Northern Ohio Area Chambers of Commerce (NOACC), and insurers like Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, have been working on creative ways to develop health plans that offer small employers better cost controls with more flexibility and choice in meeting the needs of their employees.
As a result, today’s small employers may choose from a variety of options that provide cost-effective health benefits for employees and their families. With membership in NOACC, businesses have access to a variety of Anthem health plans and life products at discounted rates. In addition to lower costs, health plans through NOACC offer small employers preventive coverage, disease management programs and health education to help employees stay healthy and productive. Just as other plans currently doing business in Ohio, health plans offered by NOACC comply with state rules and regulations in terms of solvency, benefit mandates, consumer protections and premium limits. This helps protect small business owners and their employees from fraud and potential health plan insolvency.
Defined contribution health plans, like Anthem ByDesign, provide small businesses yet another way to protect their bottom line while providing employees the level of health benefits they need based upon their individual health needs. Through such health plans, employers gain better control over their annual premiums by offering employees a core or basic health benefits package that may include prescription drug coverage, vision and dental benefits, and life and disability insurance. Employees can accept the basic package or choose one with a higher level of benefits and different co-payments and deductibles if it meets their specific needs.
Regardless of which plan is right for your business, Anthem and NOACC encourage you to seek health benefits that offer better cost controls, increased flexibility and choice and, perhaps most importantly, stability for years to come. For more information about health coverage options for small businesses, contact NOACC at 1-866-466-6222 or Anthem at 1-800-545-6473.
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