Kimberley Caffrey

Health benefits can help small businesses attract and keep strong employees, especially as rising healthcare costs pressure budgets and many smaller employers lag larger firms.
A 2025 survey found 97% of large firms offered health benefits, versus ~59% of small businesses, leaving smaller employers at a recruiting disadvantage.
Cost-conscious options included multiple plan choices, HSAs with high-deductible coverage, and regularly shopping renewals to negotiate better rates or stronger benefits.
Alternatives to traditional group coverage included HRAs for reimbursements and level-funded plans, which offered predictable costs and possible year-end refunds when claims stayed low.
PEOs helped small employers access larger risk pools, better rates, broader coverage, and less benefits administration by handling compliance, onboarding, and claims support.
Wellness programs and compliance support also mattered: screenings, exercise, mental health, and smoking cessation could cut workplac

Small Businesses Can Strengthen Benefits

Starting Jan. 1, over 50 insurers will use one data-submission standard for common pre-treatment reviews to cut delays from incomplete documentation.

The aligned requirements cover frequent services like orthopedic surgeries, CT scans, and MRIs across commercial insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid.

Insurers call the framework a key step toward immediate electronic prior authorization responses, following earlier efforts that reduced prior authorizations by 11%.

Participating insurers represent over 250 million covered lives, including many major carriers.

Standardized submissions should simplify provider workflows, boost first-pass approvals, and speed care when needed information arrives.