Regular exams and cleanings from your dentist help teeth and gums stay healthy. There is increasing evidence linking our oral health with our general health. By placing an emphasis on prevention, and by covering regular teeth cleanings and check-ups, Americans saved nearly $100 billion in dental care costs during the 1980s.

Vision insurance is a wellness benefit designed to reduce the costs of routine, preventive eye care such as eye exams, eyewear and other services. Potentially high costs of routine eye examinations and prescription eyewear can be of real concern, especially for large families. Vision insurance policies typically cover routine eye exams and other procedures, and provide specified dollar amounts or discounts for the purchase of eyeglasses and contact lenses. Some vision insurance policies also offer discounts on refractive surgery, such as LASIK and PRK.

Have you thought about how your employees’ survivors would cover their finances if anything happened to their loved one? Life insurance is the base of financial security for your employees and their families, protecting their financial resources against the uncertainties of life; allowing them to plan for the future.

SBS Advisors is able to help you offer, at your employees’ expense, a wide variety of voluntary products. You might be familiar with dental, vision, life and disability. However, there are many other insurance products to consider: critical illness, telemedicine, gap health coverage, accident, cancer, and more.

The Premium Only Plan is the building block of the Section 125 Plan. It allows for certain employee paid group insurance premiums to be paid with pre-tax dollars. Employees can reduce their taxable income by 20 – 40%. The savings are on city, state, and federal income taxes, including Social Security and Medicare. Employers save the matching Social Security (6.20%) and Medicare (1.45%) taxes, which equates to 7.65% (1.45% for municipalities) of all the dollars put through the plan, resulting in a substantial savings.

If your company offers a health plan, employees may opt to have a Flexible Spending Arrangement. An FSA allows a fixed amount of pre-tax wages to be set aside for qualified expenses. Qualified expenses may include child care or uncovered medical expenses. The amount set aside must be determined in advance and employees lose any unused dollars in the account at year-end.

An HSA is a tax-advantaged savings account used with a qualified health insurance plan. Employees can take more control of their healthcare costs and save on premiums with an HSA.

COBRA provides certain former employees, retirees, spouses, former spouses, and dependent children the right to temporary continuation of health coverage at group rates. Health coverage for COBRA participants is usually more expensive than health coverage for active employees. This is because employers usually pay a part of the premium for active employees, while COBRA participants generally pay the entire premium themselves. We can help you set up your COBRA coverage, or help you find a better health coverage alternative.

There are many reasons people avoid visiting a doctor’s office–high co-pays, not thinking their ailments are worth a trip to the doctor, not living near a medical office, they are afraid of doctors, they can’t get an appointment soon enough, etc. Telemedicine provides immediate access to physicians over the phone, secure e-mail or video. Telemedicine programs give your employees more choice and control. Many employers report less lost work time when employees have access to telemedicine. Monthly telemedicine fees are very affordable, normally under $10!