Without insurance, the cost of healthcare can be substantial.
Most working people get health insurance through an employer-sponsored plan. While the employer rarely pays for all of the cost of coverage in such arrangements, these plans usually offer a more affordable option than an individual policy, as they are partially subsidized. Employers don't have to offer such group policies. However, if they do, they cannot discriminate against individual employees and must provide the same access to every qualifying worker.
Group Policies
When employers offer health-insurance benefits to their employees, they will usually sign a long-term contract with a conventional health-insurance firm to purchase what is called a "group policy." The concept is very similar to purchasing t-shirts or hamburger buns in bulk for all employees and getting a favorable price as a result. This insurance policy then becomes available to all or a certain part of the company's workforce. The price that the company can obtain for such a policy depends on many factors, including the general state of health of the workforce, location and the size of the company. As usual, the larger the purchase, the lower the cost tends to be.
Subsidized Plans
Often, the employer not only gets a far better rate than individual employees could negotiate on their own, but also pays a certain portion of insurance premiums on behalf of employees. Nonetheless, this practice isn't universal or mandatory. An employer could negotiate an attractive rate for its employees, but require participating workers to pay the entire cost out-of-pocket. It's also possible that you can purchase a less attractive but cheaper policy on your own than the health plan offered by your employer. Instead of the very low deductibles and very high limits on coverage from your employer's plan, you could shop around and possibly find a policy with better terms at a lower price.
Mandatory Insurance
While most employers find it beneficial to offer a health plan to their workforce to retain the best talent, no provision in the law mandates all employers to offer health insurance to their employees. Consequently, some companies don't offer health insurance and it's perfectly legal not to. The 2010 Healthcare Reform includes incentives for employers to provide health insurance to their employees. But companies can still elect not to provide insurance coverage to their workers.
Discrimination
While an employer can choose not to offer a health insurance plan to employees, it's illegal to offer such a plan and refuse participation on a discriminatory basis. In simpler terms, the employer must clearly define who is eligible to participate in the health plan and allow all qualifying employees to do so. If, for instance, the policy states that all full-time employees are eligible for the insurance plan three months after their first date of employment, no full-time employee who has been working for the company for more than three months can be denied participation. Doing so is considered a discriminatory practice and could be grounds for a lawsuit.
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