A carrier list tells you who we can call. It does not tell you who to pick.
Access to the market is the easy part. What decides your cost is what happens to the proposals after they arrive, and whether the plan should go out at all this year.
The number is set before the market sets it.
We have access to 93 carriers. We use that access only after we know what your plan should cost.
Your Number First
We break the renewal into trend, your own claims and enrollment mix before any carrier is asked to quote. Every proposal is then held to that number.
Whether To Go Out
Going to market every year is not automatically in your interest. A credible plan priced fairly is sometimes better renegotiated than moved, and disruption costs what no rate sheet shows.
One Census For Everyone
Each carrier prices the same people and the same plan design, so the quotes can actually be compared.
Rates Apart From Volumes
A carrier can win every per-unit rate and still cost more in total, because it priced on its own volume estimates. We separate the two before anyone is dismissed.
You get an answer, not a stack of comparisons.
Plan Design, Line By Line
Deductibles, coinsurance, networks and pharmacy tiers set side by side, so a lower premium is not bought with a weaker plan nobody noticed.
What You Give Up
Every option has a cost beyond price: a narrower network, a harder administration, a year of disruption. We put it next to the premium.
A Recommendation
Which option, what it costs and why. Your decision, made with the trade-offs in front of you.
No league table of carriers, and no logo wall.
Any broker can print a list of carriers. A list proves access, not judgment, and the right carrier depends on your census, your network needs and your timing. So we show you the reasoning on your own case, not a ranking.
Questions that come up.
Short answers to the questions we hear most. Each links to the full page.
Does access to a long carrier list mean you will shop my plan around every year?
No. Access to carriers is only a starting point. Marketing a plan every year is not always in your interest, because a fairly priced plan can sometimes be renegotiated instead. Switching carriers also carries disruption costs that rate sheets do not show, so we weigh whether to go out at all.
How do you make carrier quotes comparable when they come back?
Each carrier prices the same employees and the same plan design, so the quotes can be compared fairly. We also separate per-unit rates from volume estimates, because a carrier with the best rates can still cost the most overall. Deductibles, coinsurance, networks and pharmacy tiers are shown side by side.
Will I get a ranked list of carriers or a clear recommendation?
You get a recommendation, not a league table. We name the preferred option, its cost and our reasoning, and show what you give up, such as a narrower network or added administrative work. The right carrier depends on your census, network needs and timing, and the final decision stays with you.
Ready? Send us your renewal, or talk it through with someone first. No cost, no obligation.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Plan-specific questions belong with the plan documents, the carrier and counsel.
Send us your renewal.
We’ll tell you whether it looks competitive, where we see opportunity, and the five questions we’d put to your carrier. No cost, and no obligation to move anything.
The renewal letter
Your current plan summary
Contribution split by tier
Enrolled counts by tier
Four documents — two more if your group is 50 or more. Nothing else; every extra one is a reason to postpone.
An independent employee benefits consulting firm. We look at the entire benefits program — cost, plan performance, risk and administration.
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