What do I need to know about buying group health insurance online? Will it help save me money?

Billy Dukes is a marketing director at the benefits side Firstdoor.com, with a home page that states it provides “A one-stop solution for the employee benefits and human resource management that needs of small businesses”.

He claims, “Our sweet spot is around the 2000-person company. They’re big enough to a point where they have to deal with the issues of employee management and benefits, but small enough that they don’t have one person dedicated to human resources decision-making. We try to create the knowledge and tools that can help them make a better insurance decision.”

However, because strict state regulations regarding premium levels, purchasing a health plan online won’t be cheaper. As a matter of fact, it might be even more expensive than purchasing a policy by coming into an office.

When you think of purchasing insurance policies online, you probably think that you are going to save money.

You are, but not if you own a small business. They have to go through a special online-application proves that will require them to provide the same amount of work as visiting a broker in person. That won’t save time, and it probably won’t save them money.

However, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t get a price quote. With today’s modern technological developments, it is faster and easier to get a quote. Your quote will be based on your company and employee information.

You will first need to fill out basic information like your name, the company’s address and your line of business. Your line of business is either a Standard Industry Classification (SIC) code, or with a descriptive keyword. You should also say how many employees will be covered.

You will also need to enter an employee census: name, age and gender of each of your employees. Some sites will require information like birth dates of employees. You will need to know whether a spouse or children will be covered under the plan.

Then you will have to figure out what your plan requirements are. Ask yourself the following questions:

• Is maternity coverage needed?

• Am I going to have dental insurance?

• Will there be deductibles for hospital stays?