Toni owns a Montessori school in Dallas. Her team of employees helps her bring creative ideas to life that help spur a love of learning and curiosity in the children they work with every day. She’s incredibly proud of the work they do together.
The continued rising expenses of operating a business has forced Toni to take a hard look at her budget for the upcoming year. Health insurance plan costs stood out as one of the biggest risers in her budget. She needs to save money, but cutting back health insurance options too much worries her. Would her employees feel unsupported? Would they leave for other jobs with better benefits?
Toni needed a way to save money without losing the loyalty and trust of her team. Like many Texas business owners, she wondered how to cut cost of coverage without hurting her company’s culture or competitiveness. By focusing on a few key areas, Toni found a way to balance savings with employee satisfaction.
Toni knew that health care coverage wasn’t just a line item in her budget—it was one of the reasons her current employees loved working for her. Cutting too much could hurt morale and even cause some of her best team members to leave. She wanted to avoid that at all costs.
Insurance coverage is a top priority for many employees. Especially for younger, single teachers who cannot rely on a spouse's health plan. It’s often one of the first things they consider when deciding whether to stay at a job or look elsewhere. Businesses that reduce benefits or raise costs too much risk losing the trust and loyalty of their teams.
Toni realized she could save additional money while keeping her employees happy by adding simple perks like wellness programs. These programs were included in her health insurance plan and helped her employees feel supported in staying healthy. This can help lower out of pocket medical costs for the employees and let Toni add a perk to not lose what mattered most: her people.
Toni’s next concern was how her business compared to others in the industry. Health benefits are a big part of what attracts top talent. If her benefits were too basic or too expensive for employees, she worried she’d lose out on hiring the best designers.
To find out what other businesses offered, Toni worked with Insurance For Texans to see what others in the Dallas area were offering. The experienced insurance broker was able to show her health plans from similar companies to see what was standard. She learned that many businesses focused on offering high-deductible plan options and wide provider networks. By understanding those features, Toni felt confident her health plan could compete against her competition in Dallas.
How did she do that? After considering a self-funded plan, she trimmed down less-used features. Toni felt that her employees relied on their current deductibles being lower in case something major happened. This move allowed her to save money without sacrificing her ability to attract and retain talented team members.
Finally, Toni looked into how to balance the health plan cost between her business and her employees. She had traditionally offered more than the required employer contribution toward health plan costs, but those days were sadly going to have to come to an end. The premium rates were climbing and forcing her to pay more.
As a trade off, the lower individual deductibles that she kept and lower copays allowed her to make the cost of coverage feel more affordable to her employees. They were able to save expense in payroll taxes while their out of pocket costs were still low. This is a win for both sides when it works out.
Toni also decided to offer tiered healthcare plans. Employees could choose between options that fit their budgets and healthcare needs. For example, some employees did opt for higher individual deductibles with lower monthly premiums, while others chose more comprehensive healthcare plans with higher premiums and the lower out of pocket costs. This approach gave her employees flexibility and allowed Toni to keep overall costs down.
Working with an experienced health insurance broker helped Toni explore this option. The broker guided her through different plans and explained how tiered options could work for her business. Toni felt confident in the choice, knowing it gave her employees control over their health coverage while saving her company money.
Toni discovered that cutting health insurance costs didn’t have to mean cutting corners. By focusing on employee satisfaction, staying competitive, and exploring cost-sharing strategies, she created a plan that worked for her business and her team. It wasn’t always easy, but having the right guidance made all the difference.
If you’re a Texas business owner like Toni, you don’t have to navigate these decisions alone. With help from experts, you can find a health insurance plan that works for your team and your bottom line.
Click the button below to connect with Insurance For Texans and explore how to balance health insurance costs with employee retention for your business.