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Contact Us
Foundation Insurance Group
803 West Broad Street
Suite 500
Falls Church, VA 22046
703-988-3750 (phone)
800-203-2811 (toll free)
www.foundationinsurancegroup.com
info@figva.com
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How Your Business Can Get the Most Out of (and Avoid Losses From) The ACA, Part 2 Prepare HR for Those 2.3 Million "Lost" Jobs
But what if you already offer health insurance to your employees? Well, you may have heard about the expected 2.3 million "lost" jobs that will result from Obamacare - and while that's actually a misinterpretation of things to come, a few of those 2.3 million jobs could be at your business.
The estimate, made by the Congressional Budget Office a few months ago, doesn't actually mean that 2.3 million jobs will disappear, but it does mean that the equivalent of 2.3 million full-time workers might. That is, the CBO estimates that the equivalent of 2.3 million full-time workers are currently only doing that work because they need the health insurance provided by employers. With cheaper healthcare coverage now available directly to individuals, a lot of people are expected to retire, change to part-time work, or go off to follow their dreams at a different job that doesn't provide health insurance. Those jobs will be empty - but there will be plenty more people scrambling over each other to fill them.
That's definitely something to brace for, because it could mean you'll need to do a round of hiring to replace those workers or fill those hours. Preparing now, and making an HR plan, is definitely a good move. It might also be a good move to think about the silver lining here: this gives you a chance to bring in fresh and enthusiastic (and probably also younger and healthier, and therefore cheaper to insure) workers to replace people who didn't actually want to be doing what they were doing at your business. Brace for an HR shuffle, snatch up the best job-seekers early, give a fond farewell to the workers who can finally afford to retire, and say good riddance to the apathetic workers who were only at your business for the insurance.
A Few Years Down the Road
As we saw with the Healthcare.gov website rollout fiasco, and are continuing to see with the ongoing confusion and congressional bickering, the transition to this new health care system is going to be rocky. But by keeping informed and ahead of the curve, separating facts from horror stories, and bracing where you need to, your business can get through the transition, and even benefit from it.
Some of the best news for your business might only be a few years away - 2017, to be precise. According to a recent report from PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Resource Institute, premiums will generally be lower for plans bought on the exchange than for plans provided through employers. Right now, that's the reason for workers leaving those 2.3 million full-time jobs discussed a moment ago. But, the report continues, that price difference is likely to continue through 2017, the year that, under Obamacare, employers will be able to let employees switch to buying their own insurance. In other words, in 2017 a good number of your employees will likely start buying their own insurance, so you don't have to. And that's a clear savings for your business.
Until then, keep calm, keep track of those FTEs (full-time equivalents), revitalize your workforce with new hires, and let us help you find the best way to approach the new landscape the ACA has created - so you can benefit from this new law.
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Insuring the Wave of the Future: Get the Best Protection for Your Medical Marijuana Crop or Bitcoin Investment
 Have you ever seen those lists of the oddest jobs in the world? Inspecting potato chips and making rubber chickens may seem like strange occupations, but people have to make a living.
New technology and new times make for all kinds of fresh opportunities. Whether due to the emergence of new technology (like rubber a century or so ago) or the demands of the market, new industries are constantly developing, and many of them have unique areas of risk that require novel insurance products. This is where the creative insurance underwriters get involved....
One modern industry demanding new kinds of insurance coverage is the medical marijuana dispensary. Marijuana now enjoys varying states of legality throughout the US, and insurance companies like Canassure are offering coverage to lawful pot producers and distributors.
Like any other business, dispensaries should be sure they're properly insured by the standard commercial policies like workers' compensation, property and building, and theft coverage. On top of that, though, some insurance companies are offering crop loss coverage, much like many farms use, but with exceptional focus on theft, which can be one of the biggest risks when insuring a dispensary.
Particular to the marijuana industry are risks brought about by the confusing legal jurisdictions-while marijuana is federally prohibited, it has been legalized by some states and localities, raising questions even among law enforcement officers about how to deal with dispensaries and growers. As a result, even fully legitimate dispensaries may feel the need to protect their investments against raids and legal tangles by supplementing their commercial insurance policies with raid coverage, which is offered by some companies like MMD Insurance.
 Another new industry is struggling with unforeseen insurance challenges even more than marijuana dispensaries. As our trade routes become increasingly virtual, more and more digital currencies like Bitcoin are popping up. Part of the risk involved in digital (or crypto-) currencies is that most users are anonymous (which makes it difficult to track thieves), and not tied to a government bank or insured by anyone.
Nonetheless, the popularity of Bitcoin is drawing attention from insurers. There is no official government backing of digital currency yet, but Elliptic, a UK-based online wallet company that provides secure storage for internet shopping information, announced this year that it would offer insurance to Bitcoin investors through Lloyd's of London. It will only cover Bitcoin owners who are Elliptic members, rather than offering more general protection like that which the FDIC provides for US banks; in the entirely new world of crypto-currency, it seems, we need a new world of protection as well, and the FDIC alone can't build it. Other firms are quickly developing similar policies, and if digital currencies continue to grow, so will the availability and ease of insuring your virtual investments.
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When Equipment Breakdown Coverage Becomes Important
It was once named boiler and machinery insurance. But today, it's commonly referred to as equipment breakdown coverage, and many agents say it's important for every single company and not just manufacturers or those with heavy machinery.
What is it?
Equipment breakdown insurance protects companies from losses in the event of an internal issue with equipment, including everything from manufacturing machinery to desktop computers; specialty hospital equipment to copy machines.
For example, when a machinist's lathe is out of warranty and a major part shatters, this would be covered by an equipment breakdown policy. A policy like this will usually cover repairs or replacement costs, and even more significantly, often includes compensation for lost income due to downtime business interruption.
What are the benefits?
Standard property & casualty coverage, on the other hand,will cover you if you experience an equipment loss because of an external issue (say, in a fire). But if there's a power surge, causing internal damage to your electronic equipment, that's not usually covered by your property policy -- but would be covered by equipment breakdown insurance.
Does your business need equipment breakdown coverage?
For many businesses, including this coverage might be optional, but for some industries in particular it's a clear mandate. Healthcare facilities, for example, rely on essential technical equipment and life-support systems, and manufacturing operations can lose entire product lines if just one machine fails.
And many other industries are just as vulnerable, even though it might not seem so at first glance: restaurants rely on refrigeration and stoves, mechanics use electronic diagnostic consoles, even consignment shops have computers for inventory and billing; the point is that almost every single business relies heavily on its equipment.
Whatever your class of business, it's wise to take an objective look at how reliant you are on well-functioning machinery, including your computers, phone system, electrical and HVAC systems. Then speak with your insurance agent to determine the extent of your current protection and the advantages versus the cost of adding equipment breakdown coverage.
Whether you're running a multimillion-dollar manufacturing operation or selling pizza by the slice, equipment breakdown coverage can be a smart way to insulate your business from expensive equipment repairs and costly downtime.
    
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All content © 2014 Professional Marketing Associates, Inc. This newsletter is not intended to provide specific legal or insurance advice. Please consult your individual agent for further information on the topics covered.
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