Healthy NY: Low Cost Health Insurance For Eligible Small Businesses
The Healthy NY program is designed to assist small business owners in providing their employees and their employees’ families with more affordable health insurance. Healthy NY often costs less than other private health insurance plans because it offers a more limited benefit package and the State provides funding to insurers to keep the premiums down.
Healthy NY plans are available through multiple carriers. Although all health plans include the same Healthy NY benefit package, premiums can differ. Healthy NY benefits include inpatient and outpatient hospital services, physician services, maternity care, preventive health services, diagnostic and x-ray services, and emergency services. A prescription drug benefit can be added to the benefit package. Certain benefits available in other plans are not included in Healthy NY, such as coverage for mental health services and alcohol and substance abuse treatment.
As of January 1, 2012, Healthy NY “standard” plans will no longer be available for new enrollment. High-deductible health plan options will still be available. With these plans, you must first meet the deductible ($1,250 for an individual and $2,500 for family coverage) before the plan will start paying for most care. With the high-deductible plan option, you can set up a health savings account (HSA). HSAs are tax-advantaged accounts that you can use to pay for qualified medical care not covered by the health plan.
To be eligible, a small business must meet certain criteria. For example, the business must:
- Be located in New York State
- Have fewer than 50 eligible employees
- Have at least 30% of the employees who will be offered coverage earn $40,000 or less in annual pre-tax wages (this amount is adjusted yearly for inflation)
- Not have provided health insurance to these employees in the last 12 months. (Businesses that provided limited benefits only, such as hospital-only coverage and businesses in NYC that contribute less than $75 per employee per month for coverage may still qualify for Healthy NY.)
- Contribute at least 50% of the premium for full-time employees (part-time and seasonal employees can also be covered but employer contribution is not required)
For more detailed eligibility information, click here to visit the New York State Department of Financial Services Healthy NY website.
To Enroll In Healthy NY:
When you look for health insurance on NYC Health Insurance Link, you will automatically be shown Healthy NY plans if at least 30 percent of your employees meet the income requirement. To begin looking for Healthy NY coverage on NYC Health Insurance Link, click here.
If your business is located in Brooklyn, you may qualify for Brooklyn HealthWorks. You can find out more about Brooklyn HealthWorks’ Healthy NY plan when you look for health insurance on NYC Health Insurance Link, or you can contact Brooklyn HealthWorks directly by clicking here.
You can also apply for Healthy NY by completing an application located here and submitting it directly to a health plan. For a list of Healthy NY rates and HMO plans in your borough, please click on your borough below:
For more information:
To learn more about eligibility and participation criteria, please see Healthy NY’s Small Business Eligibility page.
For more information on the Healthy NY program please visit the Healthy NY website at http://www.dfs.ny.gov/healthyny/index.html.
Last Updated: February 1, 2013