Overcome the Distraction
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, insurance, insurance coverage, insurance plan, health spending accounts, benefit coverage |
The discussion around the new Distracted Driving laws in Alberta makes me think about all the things we get ‘distracted’ by.
As I drive down any Metro road, at any given time, there are so many distractions - other drivers, mosquitoes that have snuck in, my kids. But road signs ... they have reached a whole new level of distraction. Never mind the old fashioned wooden advertising, we’re now in the electronic age and these new signs – jumbo billboard types that use to be a rarity to see at a concert in a stadium – are now the norm on the side of the road, not just to advertise, but entertain as you drive by or sit in traffic. Never mind trying to figure out your next turn or even what street you’re on, these new signs deliver what to eat, what to wear and where to go to do these things and how long it will take to get there. Who needs GPS?
Of course the idea of the new law is to have your eyes on the road ... but the message ... so glittery and available, taking us off course, encouraging us to stray from the intended purpose - getting where we are going safely.
Isn’t this a metaphor for most things in life and business?
With the intention of getting things done, we are often put off course by the distractions, the glitter, the want. It is the want that often makes us forego the need even with our health coverage. So, instead of having the right benefit plan, which covers the needs and takes care of the things we want, we get distracted by the glitz, the show, the sale.
In our business of employee benefits, we are jaded. We KNOW people need coverage for life and disability insurance, health and dental coverage, but people get distracted (scared away) by the cost of implementation and swayed by glittery mix messaging. In the end, often people forego what they and their employees “need” and they wind up with substandard coverage that creates havoc and frustration when the time comes for them to make a claim.
The point, stay focused. Keep your eyes on the road and the job at hand of providing benefits to cover the necessities. Engage qualified, competent consultants who will ensure you understand exactly what you are buying and why you are buying it. If you don’t have a need for it, don’t buy it ... it really is that simple. Then when the time comes, you have the benefit of necessary coverage, at an acceptable price without any barriers to successful outcomes.
Celebration
Wednesday, November 16, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: quikcard, quickcard, insurance, group insurance, group benefits, benefits, benefit coverage, benefit products, insurance coverage, life insurance |
Anniversaries, birthdays, family events and other special occasions are wonderful time markers. They symbolize growth and maturity, both personally and professionally.
It is truly unfortunate that sometimes the only professional time markers you hear of are the BIG ones: 10-25-50-100 years. What about all the hard work that goes into a business all those other years? As we start to poke our heads out of the current recession and reflect on all those businesses that didn’t make it through, join us in giving thanks that we’re still here, striving each day to do what we do best.
As with many companies, we too have passed some mile stones, although none of the BIG markers, but worth celebrating in any event.
- It has been 47 years since the ADSC (Alberta Dental Service Corporation) founded the original company. Dentists working for Dentist providing innovative dental benefit plans for companies in Alberta.
- It has been 22-years since the birth of Quikcard Solutions Inc. providing self-directed, self-funded health and dental plans with more flexibility, and certainly more cost effectiveness than traditional benefit plans.
- 12-years is the marker since Quikcard moved from being an Alberta based company, to a national company, offering their unique suite of services to all business in Canada (except Quebec) by opening a second office in Nova Scotia.
- The last three years marked another evolution in our growth, moving us to provide both insured and self-insured benefit plans through Quikcard Benefits Consulting Inc.
Many of our clients have grown and continued with us through every stage of progress and development since the very beginning and for that we thank them for their continued support.
For all of our clients that have joined with us, or are considering joining us now, many thanks for your business and trust in our services.
As we grow, age (don’t tell anyone) and mature (hopefully) both personally and professionally, we promise to continue to strive to offer the very best solutions in employee group benefits.
And for all of you celebrating a birthday, anniversary or a special milestone, take stock and enjoy your day. You have earned it!
What to Know When Looking for Group Insurance Quotes
Thursday, September 8, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: insurance, group benefits, group insurance, group coverage, insurance plan, insurance coverage, insurance products, broker, insurance company |
“Insurance is so complicated, there are so many rules.”This is one of the first things potential clients say to me when working together on their group benefit plan. However, this doesn't need to be the case.
This perception typically comes on the heels of that client choosing one broker to work with to receive various insurance quotes from different insurance companies. They have usually, inadvertently, called at least two separate insurance brokers figuring the brokers are an insurance company. In the group benefit world, an insurance carrier (Manulife, Sun Life, Great-West Life, Standard Life, RBC Insurance, etc.) will release only one quote to one broker. In order for another broker to receive a quote on the same client, the original broker must, in essence, be fired from the case.
You see, an insurance broker is not bound by any one insurance company … they are their own company and they work for the client – always. An insurance agent, on the other hand, is bound to one insurance company and works for that company only. A client may deal with an agent of that company, but that agent will always be biased towards the insurance company that pays them. An example of this is Blue Cross. Brokers can place business with Blue Cross for their clients, but Blue Cross is one of the only remaining insurance companies in Canada who still have their own in-house agents and, when a client calls into Blue Cross for a quotation, they are assigned an agent. Once that agent is assigned, all brokers for that business are blocked.
As a benefit broker, when a client comes through our door, going to the marketplace to gather quotations is not the first item on the list, especially if that client already has a benefit plan in place. Instead we:
1. listen to the wants and needs of that group.
2. complete an analysis of the existing benefit plan to learn what is going with the plan that has caused the client to come our way.
3. develop and build a plan design that is going to work and be able to be modified for that client as they grow and change as a business.
4. Then and only then, will we canvas the marketplace for pricing on benefits. By that point, everyone is clear about the objectives they want to achieve with the benefit plan as an overall business solution.
Insurance CAN be complicated but it doesn’t have to be. At Quikcard, we like simple, straight forward solutions that work for our clients in helping them attain their benefit goals.
Stop the Insanity
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: employee benefits, life insurance, group benefits, benefit coverage, insurance, insurance coverage, group coverage, benefits, benefit products, insurance products, quickcard insurance, benefit plan, coverage, health spending accounts, health spending account, group insurance, employee coverage, employee group benefits |
Everyone in business knows the old adage of insanity … continually doing the same thing and expecting different results. The same applies to Employee Group Benefits.
Time after time, employers get fed up with their current benefit plan- the benefits being provided and, especially, the pricing. However, instead of looking for something different, something to stop the cycle, they typically just change the carrier and/or broker.
So, what has been accomplished in this scenario? Either the existing broker or a new broker suggestspricing can be established with a new insurance carrier where the company can get better pricing with no loss of coverage. It’s a good deal and typically employers go for it, saving around 10-12% over the existing rates. Inevitability, time marches on, once again the pricing has gone up and the cycle repeats because there has been no real change to the benefit plan.
In essence nothing changes as the business owner has enacted the same old strategy, but expected different results.
It can be different with the introduction of Strategy, Analysis, and Planning.
A good plan analysis will review the existing plan design and measure it against the overall business objectives of the company. This means reviewing the history of the benefit costs and claims, measuring results, accounting for the money being spent on coverage and comparing it the money being spent to provide the coverage. A benefit plan should mirror the business plan, being just as fluid and changeable as the business over time. And, just like a good business plan, the owner should know all the ins and outs of how everything should be working compared to how it is actually working.
To stop the insanity, look at what is important to the plan members, understand the pricing, and ensure catastrophic events are covered. Then plan and implement strategic solutions which ensure superior coverage and price stability over time so the cycle of insanity is stopped.
We Mean What We Say
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, hsa, health spending accounts, group benefits, group coverage, group insurance, benefits, insurance coverage, insurance plan, insurance |
I was listening to the radio and an advertisement came on for Lube-X narrated by a fellow with an excellent, what I would refer to as a ‘western’ voice: “We say it. We mean it. And more importantly, we do it,” he intoned at the end of the spiel.
How important is that in a world full of commercials and mass media? A lot of companies ‘say it’ and obviously they ‘mean it’ but it wasn’t the ‘we do it’ that grabbed me … it was the ‘more importantly’ part of his slogan, because he is right. It is one thing to say it, but it is much more important to do it. Said another way, you can put the worm on the hook to bait the fish and you can catch the fish, but can you prepare the fish in a meal that is both edible and likable? That truly is the challenge.
We can … we are right there with Lube-X … we say we create “easy, affordable, flexible benefit plans” and, you know what? We do!
Our plans follow the KIS (keep it simple) approach and many initially accuse us of being too easy because they have been conditioned to complication in the benefits world … but when broken down, benefits are not complicated.
Our plans are affordable. We consistently (yet another great word that has meaning) provide savings for our clients. These are not just words that sound good, these are words with meaning that we put into action.
Flexible. There are not many brokerage companies that can claim they offer benefit plans to single, incorporated professional corporations as well as large multi-nationals. We do. And we do this while always keeping our services consistent. We build to suit. We listen to our clients and provide benefits that suit their needs because each company’s benefit plan is as unique as a finger print and should be treated as such.
Are you unique?
Of course you are!
Don’t you deserve a benefit package that is as unique as your business approach?
Of course you, and your employees, do!
Give us a call to learn we really do mean what we say!
Stop-Loss Prescription Coverage
Wednesday, June 8, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: Stop-loss, stop loss, coverage, insurance, hsa, health spending account |
Stop-Loss Prescription Coverage
Earlier this year we were pleased to release a stand-alone, stop-loss insurance specifically designed to cover catastrophic prescription needs up to $25,000 per person in the household.
Prescription stop-loss is intended for the high cost, unplanned catastrophic eventualities, not the everyday antibiotic pharmaceuticals or annual dental cleanings.
Unlike other aspects of the health care system, there is no universal coverage in place for prescription drugs. Nevertheless, they are a common household expense, with over 300 million prescriptions filled each year—about 10 for each man, woman and child. Although some employers may consider purchasing stop-loss coverage an unnecessary expense compared to more traditional style benefit plans, there are significant savings to be had by strategically building a benefit plan on sound principals of coverage and cost containment, including stop-loss coverage.
Results vary from one province to another but in a recent analysis, we compared a fully insured benefit plan with that which utilized the best providers for each category of coverage. This plan looked at Life Insurance, AD&D, Dependent Life Insurance, Long-Term Disability (LTD), Prescription Drug (Rx) coverage, Extended Health Care (EHC), Emergency Travel and Dental Care. No Short-Term Disability, no Critical Illness, and no Vision Care service.
Apples to apples on the plan design, we looked at the same insurance carrier for the Life, AD&D, Dependent Life and LTD. We utilized at a self-insured, administrative services only plan (ASO) for EHC and Dental; used the RBC Group Travel for the Emergency Travel Assistance and our new Stop Loss coverage for the pharmaceutical coverage.
The Emergency Medical Assistance our plan offered, through RBC as a stand-alone product, is $2.89 for a single employee and $6.59 for family. Due to volume pricing we are able to offer this at a significant discount to anyone else in the marketplace.
Using an ASO product for health and dental means the costs are based on claims plus administration. If there are no claims, there are no costs to the company. There are no sign-up fees, no transactional fees and no monthly costs. Simply administration on claims. An insured plan for these benefits charges on the premium regardless of usage and the typical savings for a company using an ASO product, depending on circumstances, is roughly 15-20%.
Factoring in the Prescription Stop-loss, non-medically underwritten at $26 per single and $61 per family per month, we were able to save this company 22% over the fully insured plan, with no loss of coverage.
One may think using so many carriers/providers would complicate the benefit plan but that is not so. These are our provider partners behind the scene and to the end user, our client, it is one plan, working to ensure the best coverage is available from the very best providers of that coverage. Segmenting a plan like this ensures accuracy in pricing for each component of the benefit plan and allows our clients to see and budget their costs from one year to the next with little to no surprises, while at the same time, ensuring the best coverage is available for their employees.
ROI of Benefits
Wednesday, May 11, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: benefits, benefit plans, dental, hsa, health spending accounts |
ROI of Benefits
Life is all about choices and to have choices, you need to have options. Often we don't consider having options when it comes to paying for dental or health care services. However, not knowing those options can mean we are paying far more out of pocket for those services then we need to.
For example, a client owns a business and requires dental work in the amount of $3,588. The client has several options for coverage, but the primary focus from the client’s point-of-view is not paying out of pocket for the service so they are referred to Medicard, a patient finance company. Essentially, a credit card specifically for health care services.
The dental services are performed and Medicard takes care of the bill, treating it as a loan in the client’s personal name, not their corporate name. It is repayable over 60-months with the client paying $105.17 per month and being charged:
• 21.95% annual interest, which amounts to $2,719.48 over the life of the loan (at this point many will point out that this client does not have to continue the loan for 60-months, they can repay it at any time. True, but anyone following the financial skills of the average Canadian, know without my saying, that MOST will not repay early, they simply cannot afford to.)
• As well as the one time grantor’s loan finance charge of $215.28
By the time this $3,588 dental bill is repaid, five years AFTER the service, the client would be out-of-pocket $6,522.76! Almost double the original bill. It’s like continuing to pay for a sofa that has long since gone out of style and been sold it in a garage sale.
There is, of course another way, better way, the Quikcard way.
The same dental bill of $3,588 can be funded through their company Quikcard account with corporate money and NO sign-up fees. Health and dental services provided in Canada (outside the province of Quebec) are considered non-taxable, so the company does not have tax consequences of paying for this on behalf of the owner (also considered an employee).
The claim is issued and there is:
• A 12% administration fee charged on the dental bill, amounting to $430.56.
• GST charged on the administration fee, $21.53.
The grand total of the claim treated in this fashion is $4,040.09 creating a savings of $2,473.67 over the Medicard!
Savings are savings, no matter how you slice it … but let’s take it just one step further. The $2,473 is not only personal savings for this client, but because the Quikcard account is in the company name, the full amount of the dental bill becomes a 100% corporate tax deduction instead of the client having to repay the Medicard loan personally with after tax dollars, where in order to pay the $105 each month, the client had to earn $143!
Do you know about the choices you have in covering these services?
A Glimpse of Real Life
Wednesday, April 13, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, insurance coverage, travel insurance, travel coverage, travel benefits, benefit coverage, group benefits, group coverage, insurance, insurance plan, insurance products, quikcard, quickcard insurance, employee benefits, benefit plan, employee coverage, coverage |
It is an all too common scenario for those of us in the benefits world to hear of employees who chose not to participate in the benefit plan only to need it later.
While an employee may have health and dental coverage through their spouse's plan, that spousal plan does not cover the employee for life or disability coverage. If the employee refuses all benefits, they and their family have no coverage for the employee in the event of an accident or illness that disables them or takes their life.
Maybe it’s a year or two, or maybe it’s as soon as three months later and this employee suffers a stroke, is in a car accident or is hurt while working on a truck. Now they have no benefits to help them through this difficult time.
Once treatment is received, the first phone call typically goes to the employer to check what benefit plan they are on and if they have disability coverage. For those without coverage, that call frequently goes like this:
“I know I turned it down before, but now I need the coverage and I’m willing to pay the premiums. It’s pretty tight just now with no income and all of my existing insurance is tied to my house, car and other loans … I thought I had coverage, but I’ve just gone through everything and I don’t. When I was offered the plan, I didn't realize I wasn't covered for this and now I have a family that needs to eat, be clothed and bills to be paid and I have no income.”
Don't be the one to make this phone call. Insurance carriers cannot make exceptions in this type of situation. Just like with car insurance, you cannot get coverage once you are sitting in the middle of the intersection involved in a car accident. There is NO coverage available after an incident has occurred.
Was your coverage clearly explained to you? Do you know what coverage you and/or your spouse have? Have you ever experienced a situation like this?
Benefits So I can Understand Them
Wednesday, March 23, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, insurance, group benefits, benefits, benefit coverage, insurance coverage, insurance plan, group coverage, experience benefits, insurance products, benefit products |
Having been in the insurance arena for a number of years, I know insurance one of the harder topics to understand. The language of insurance is polluted with jargon making it difficult for people to relate and understand how it applies to them. By the time clients are at my door, it takes hip waders to get though all of the misconceptions they have been burdened with over the years.
In an era of abundant communication through such venues as twitter, blogs, facebook and the internet, in general, it should be easier to understand services like insurance and benefits, but it’s not. Sometimes those misconceptions are created through the legalities necessary in the business. Legalities aside, I will try and explain benefits in an easily understood way.
Life Insurance, it’s the lottery that ALWAYS pays out … you pay your premiums each month, like purchasing your ticket each week, and eventually someone wins because death is a sure and certain event.
When it comes to group benefits, Life Insurance, Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D), Dependent Life Insurance and Long Term Disability are four of the most common insurance products. Pricing for these is not significantly different from one insurance carrier to another as it is based on national pooled information. If we consider these four as the “insurance” side of our benefits, then pricing for these would be much like going to the pumps for gas … there really is little difference. What makes the difference is the quality (in each consumer’s opinion) and the size of the tank. The size of the tank meaning how much insurance is purchased.
The other side of a benefit plan is a where consumers live day-to-day. That’s where they purchase services such as prescription drugs, health, vision and dental care. We’ll refer to these benefits as experience benefits because they are based on consumer usage. Think of these like going to the grocery store. At any one of the big grocery chains, the price difference between the same cut of beef can be significant depending on how much is required, the supply the store has on hand, their supplier and even the time of the year it is purchased.
Shopping for these benefits takes strategy and know how. The plan design, or list of benefits (groceries), necessary for your company makes a big difference in price.
Providing coverage just to have a plan in place is one thing. Providing coverage or benefits that actually meet people’s expectations and needs is what makes the difference. For the person who requires prescriptions, a least costly alternative makes all the difference. Having a good benefit plan doesn’t mean busting the pocket book, it means knowing what you are purchasing and purchasing the right products for your business.
Do you know what benefit coverage your company needs? What means are you using to learn that? How does your company adjust for the changing needs?
