You have five realistic options besides a traditional group plan: a QSEHRA or ICHRA (you reimburse employees for their own insurance), a level-funded plan, a health-sharing ministry, a high-deductible plan paired with direct primary care, or direct primary care and dental memberships on their own. Only the last two put an actual doctor in front of your employees for a fixed price. Memberships cost $135 a month per person for a Long Island doctor and $325 a year for a dentist, with no underwriting, no minimum participation and no renewal.
| Option | Employer cost / employee | What the employee gets |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional group plan | ~$657/mo + renewals | Insurance with a $2,631 deductible |
| QSEHRA / ICHRA | Whatever you set (often $300–$600/mo) | Cash toward a plan they buy themselves |
| Level-funded plan | Similar to group, with a possible refund | Insurance, needs 10+ enrollees usually |
| Health-sharing ministry | $200–$500/mo | Not insurance; no guarantee of payment |
| HDHP + direct primary care | HDHP premium + $135/mo | Hospital coverage plus a doctor on call |
| DPC + dental memberships only | $135/mo + $325/yr | A local doctor and dentist, no deductible |
Pick a max per employee for a doctor and a dentist. The page shows which local practices fit.
They choose their own doctor and dentist from that list. No network cards, no claims.
Itemized per person. You pay what each person actually picked. Start or stop any month.
Memberships alone, by a wide margin. They don't replace hospital coverage, so many owners pair them with a catastrophic or high-deductible plan and still come out far below a full group plan.
Yes. A QSEHRA reimburses insurance premiums; memberships are a separate benefit you pay directly. Ask your accountant how to document each.
No, and that's deliberate. It's a direct agreement between the employee and the practice. Companies under 50 employees have no ACA employer mandate anyway.
About eight minutes on upsurance.co/employers. Employees are usually enrolled within the week.