With over 65 percent of employers offering dental insurance, it might be a good time to consider dental plans for your small business. That’s because benefits are one of the most critical factors in employee satisfaction. Offering benefits packages can be one of the best ways for your small business to retain current employees and attract top talent since dental insurance is at the top of the list of desirable benefits.

Routine cleanings are essential to protect against cavities, gum disease, and other ailments. Just like regular visits to your doctor are important, a visit to your dentist will help improve your long-term health and catch problems before they arise. It’s just common sense that employees prefer dental insurance.

Recommend Employee Individual Coverage

The cheapest and easiest way to offer dental insurance to your employees is simply to recommend that they sign up for their coverage. It’s a polite way to say that you won’t be providing group coverage for your employees.

We recommend against this option for several reasons. Though it is more helpful than simply ignoring the subject altogether, not providing benefits will likely lower employee retention. If your goal is to keep your top talent, you should seriously consider other options of providing benefit packages for your employees.

Still, if you decide you have no other option, you should be aware of your employees’ process to obtain coverage. Though it will cost them, your employees will still have the opportunity to choose specific plans that meet their exact needs. In contrast, some group coverages don’t always provide everything an employee needs. Many dental insurance companies can offer comprehensive coverage to your employees.

Provide Group Coverage

Dental care is critical, so offering group coverage is one of the best ways you can make sure you’re taking care of your employees. The problem is that small business dental plans by themselves are pretty expensive. Larger corporations almost always offer comprehensive benefits packages because they can negotiate lower rates for their employees due to their size.

Small businesses are disadvantaged here because it usually doesn’t make sense for insurance agencies to offer a potential client more competitive rates if they only provide for a couple of dozen employees. Unless your employees are specifically interested in dental insurance, this might be your most expensive option.

The benefit of providing a group coverage dental plan is that you can choose which plan you’re interested in. You can gear the plan you provide to meet your employees’ needs specifically. For example, many plans only cover basic teeth cleanings, but if your staff has a lot of children, then you might want to discuss the option of a more comprehensive coverage plan that would cover braces or retainers for growing children.

Outsource to a PEO

There are many benefits to outsourcing your benefits, including dental insurance, to a Professional Employer Organization (PEO). PEOs typically provide Human Resources needs to small and medium-sized businesses. Small businesses that use PEOs usually grow faster, have lower turnover, and are significantly less likely to go out of business. In addition, most businesses that hire a PEO will choose some kind of employee benefits package to offer their employees, which is how many small businesses offer dental plans.

We’ve already touched on that small businesses often cannot negotiate better deals for insurance benefits, while large corporations often do. With the many challenges of running a small business, offering benefits at higher prices through group coverage isn’t usually the best use of resources.

Instead, many small businesses will choose to hire a PEO to cover business essentials, such as human resources, benefits, and workers’ compensation. By doing this, small businesses save time and money. The hassle, negotiating, and paperwork can all be taken off your table, leaving you to focus on what’s most important: growing your business.

Additionally, there are many ways that your business can qualify for tax breaks or credits for offering benefits as a small business. Using a PEO will guarantee that you are aware of what your qualify for, and you can end up saving a lot of money while still providing additional benefits to your employees.

Canal HR: Offerings

Canal HR has been providing Louisiana payroll preparation, employee benefits, workers’ compensation, payroll services, and other human resource services since 1992. Outsourcing your human resource services to a top-rated Louisiana PEO will allow you to focus more on running your business while we handle the paperwork.

Though the Affordable Care Act (ACA) doesn’t view dental insurance as an essential healthcare choice, offering it will help you stand out from the competition, retain high-quality employees, and support your employees’ wellness. Canal HR offers two kinds of dental plans to employees, allowing them to choose between basic coverage and more comprehensive coverage. Depending on the size of your business, Canal HR can determine if you qualify for a tax credit that will offset the cost of dental insurance for your employees.We serve hundreds of businesses throughout the southeastern United States, and we have the personnel and experience needed to offer your employees the most competitive benefits at the most competitive rates. If you’re looking to grow your business, get paperwork off your desk, and increase what you can offer to your employees, then contact us to learn more about what we bring to the table.