Benefits of Self-Funded Medical Insurance for Business Owners

Being a business owner comes with many responsibilities, including providing quality healthcare benefits to your employees. Self-funded medical insurance is becoming an increasingly popular option for business owners due to its numerous benefits. In this overview, we will explore the advantages of self-funded medical insurance and how it can benefit your business and employees.

Cost Savings and Control

One of the primary benefits of self-funded medical insurance is the potential for cost savings and increased control over healthcare expenses. With self-funding, businesses have the ability to customize their health plans and only pay for the services that are actually used by employees. This eliminates the need to pay premiums for unused services, resulting in potential cost savings.

Additionally, self-funded plans are not subject to state insurance premium taxes and many state-mandated benefit requirements. This allows businesses to have more control over their healthcare expenses and allocate their budget towards areas that are most beneficial for their unique workforce.

Flexibility and Customization

Self-funded medical insurance provides flexibility and customization options that traditional insurance plans may not offer. With self-funding, businesses have the freedom to design and tailor their health plans according to the specific needs of their employees. This can include coverage options, network selection, and benefit design.

The flexibility also extends to the choice of healthcare providers. Self-funded plans often offer a broader network of providers, giving employees more options to access quality care. This allows employees to choose the providers they trust and prefer, fostering better employee satisfaction and engagement.

Access to Data and Insights

Another advantage of self-funded medical insurance is the access to valuable data and insights. Since businesses are directly responsible for funding their employee healthcare expenses, they have access to detailed claims data, utilization patterns, and healthcare trends. This data can provide businesses with valuable insights to identify cost-saving opportunities, negotiate better rates with providers, and implement wellness programs tailored to their employees' needs.

Having access to this data not only allows businesses to make informed decisions about their healthcare program but also supports proactive efforts to improve employee health and well-being.

Self-funded medical insurance offers significant benefits for business owners. It provides cost savings, increased control, flexibility, and customization options, as well as access to valuable data and insights. Consider exploring self-funded insurance as a viable option to provide quality healthcare benefits to your employees while optimizing your business's healthcare expenses.

Practice Leader(s)

Captive Practice Leader, Managing Director

Max Jong

Captive Practice Leader, Managing Director

Max Jong is the Captive Practice Leader and Managing Director at Risk Management Advisors, an alternative risk and captive management firm. Max began his career at Northwestern Mutual in 1994 after graduating from UCLA. Over 12 years, he built a successful financial services practice while heading up an office overseeing 50 professionals in Los Angeles and Irvine, California. The office was perennially one of the top producing organizations in the Northwestern Mutual system.

Max joined his partners at Risk Management Advisors in 2007 as he began to work with more sophisticated mid-market business owners. RMA specializes in the design, formation, and management of captive insurance companies. There’s also an emphasis on self-funded group benefits as well as other creative alternative risk management strategies. The firm assists business owners in better managing their risks without jeopardizing their balance sheets. In 2019, he headed up a merger with Risk Strategies, a Top 10 private national specialty insurance brokerage and consulting firm. Since then, he was appointed as the Captive Practice Leader to oversee the growth and development of the organization.

For five years, Max served as an Independent Director for Fiat Lux Risk and Insurance Company, one of the largest and most sophisticated captive insurance companies. Fiat Lux was established by the University of California Regents to better manage the broad risks of the University of California system.

Max has also been a lifelong supporter of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles. He initially volunteered to be a mentor in 1995 and is currently mentoring his second "Little." Max was asked to join the Board of Directors in 2000 and eventually served as their Board Chair. After 20+ years as an active board member, he continues to support the organization by serving as a Trustee.

He is married to Alice, and they’re raising two young children, Hunter and Hayden. Max and Alice are happily married despite her irreparable mistake of going to USC. He loves to travel, golf, and is a hopeful Lakers fan.