New Hampshire small business owners looking for affordable health insurance options for their workforce can now shop for a plan through the Small Business Health Options Program, also known as the SHOP Marketplace, according to covering New Hampshire.
This year, new SHOP plans debuted on the Marketplace in November. Employers are able to compare plans online and select one for their employees to enroll in for the coming year. Unlike the individual marketplace, SHOP does not have a specific enrollment period and eligible businesses can select a plan at any point. Employers can also control the kind of coverage they offer and how much they pay toward employee premiums. Business owners can select such items as the dates of their employees’ open enrollment, whether to offer dental with their plans, or whether employee dependents are covered as well. There are 21 SHOP plans offered by four separate carriers.
Once an employer decides on a plan, employees can submit their enrollment applications online. All NH hospitals are included in at least one plan.
The Marketplace is open to businesses with 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees. Those who do offer employees insurance through SHOP must do so for all full-time employees, or all who work over 30 hours a week. During the year, at least 75 percent of a business’ full-time employees must buy insurance through the SHOP Marketplace. Employers who are unable to meet this threshold, called the “minimum participation rate,” will only be able to enroll employees in SHOP Marketplace coverage once a year, during Open Enrollment.
Insurance agents and brokers can help small business owners with the open enrollment process and answer questions about plan renewal. Small businesses that offered SHOP Marketplace coverage in 2014 must update its coverage options online for the coming year. This cannot be done directly through the employer’s insurance carrier, but insurance agents can directly access the online portal to help business owners renew their coverage.
Insurance agents can also offer help to determine if a business qualifies for a tax credit. Small business tax credits are available to employers who offer all full-time employees coverage through the SHOP Marketplace. They must also have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees, pay their employees and average annual salary of $50,000 or less, and pay at least 50 percent of employee premium costs.
The tax credits can cover up to 50 percent of the business owner’s contribution toward employee premium costs, or up to 35 percent of the cost for tax-exempt employers. Tax credits are claimed when filing annual federal income tax returns.
The SHOP Marketplace was created as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which also included the Health Insurance Marketplace and expanded Medicaid coverage starting in 2014, known as the New Hampshire Health Protection Program (NHHPP). Employees can accept the SHOP Marketplace coverage made available through their employer, or get coverage through a plan on the individual Marketplace, through Medicaid or through another employer.
Covering New Hampshire is a gateway to the Health Insurance Marketplace in New Hampshire. For more information about the SHOP Marketplace, contact your business’ insurance agent or call the SHOP Small Employer Call Center at 1-800-706-7893 (TTY: 711), open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Learn more by going to CoveringNewHampshire.org.
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