Spiraling Health Insurance Costs for Small Businesses

CLEVELAND, June 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Small businesses facing health insurance rate increases from popular carriers and organizations in Northeast Ohio may be able to reduce premium costs by 15 percent or more for comparable coverage by participating in a new health insurance program offered by the Better Business Bureaus of Cleveland, Canton and Youngstown (BBB Healthcare Alliance).



BBB Healthcare Alliance is offering its members plans from United Healthcare, one of the nation's largest healthcare insurance providers, and Kaiser Permanente, the largest non-profit health plan in the United States. All United Healthcare plans for groups of 2 to 99 are offered, and Kaiser Permanente plans include its popular Prosper and Added Choice plans for groups of 1 and above. Kaiser plans will not be offered through the Youngstown BBB because it does not serve that part of Ohio.



"We anticipate that many of our members will be able to achieve substantial savings versus competing comparable plans in the area," said Mike Paris, president of the BBB Healthcare Alliance and the Canton BBB. "In some unusual instances, such as those involving certain pre-existing conditions by employees, our plans may not offer appreciative savings or will actually cost more. But the evaluation and quote are free to BBB members, and they would be prudent to explore their options in this era of rapidly increasing healthcare insurance premiums," he said.



Insurance brokers throughout the area that are BBB members and licensed by Kaiser Permanente and United Healthcare may sell the coverage. Small businesses interested in learning more about the programs or being referred to a participating broker may call the BBB Healthcare Alliance at 1-800-722-2039.



"While we have offered our members healthcare insurance for several years, new to this year's program is the addition of Kaiser Permanente as a provider and further premium reductions by United Healthcare for our members," said Mr. Paris.



Plans offer access to leading medical institutions, such as Cleveland Clinic Hospitals, University Hospitals of Cleveland, Summa Health System, Akron General, Forum Health Facilities, St. Elizabeth Health Center, Doctors Hospital and Mercy Medical Center, and their physicians.



The three participating BBB chapters have 8,000 member companies. The BBB of Cleveland serves Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake and Lorain counties; the BBB of Youngstown covers Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties; the BBB of Canton includes members in Belmont, Carroll, Guernsey, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Monroe, Morgan, Noble, Stark, Tuscarawas and Washington counties. Presidents of the three chapters are: David Weiss, Cleveland (216-623-8964); Pat Rose, Youngstown (330-744-7210); and Mike Paris, Canton (330-455-8202).