Sole Proprietor Plans in Nevada
In 2019, Nevada saw association health plans become available for small businesses. These plans allowed businesses to have lower health insurance premiums by grouping similar businesses together as one large group. In addition, sole proprietors could form groups with some associations to receive significantly discounted premiums. In the health insurance world, a sole proprietor is defined as a business with a single employee, the owner. Traditionally, sole proprietors could not start a group health insurance plan under the ACA (Affordable Care Act). This required them to purchase private, individual plans which are much more expensive. Once sole proprietor plans in Nevada became available, many small businesses saw huge savings on their monthly health insurance premiums. Unfortunately in 2019, a legal ruling removed these plans for 2020.
What Happened?
In a nutshell, a federal judge struck down a ruling that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) made to expand or relax restrictions on association health plans. This stopped all sole proprietors from starting an employer group. It also ended many associations altogether, even for businesses with two or more employees. Those that started these groups in 2019 prior to the ruling could keep their plans until the end of the year. After that, any business operating with only one employee would have to look at other options besides an employer group plan.
The Options
With all sole proprietor plans in Nevada terminating, business owners that enrolled in these plans will have the option to purchase private health insurance plans. The only way to get a group health insurance plan started is to have two, non-related full-time employees with the business. If this is not a possibility, then private plans are the way to go. We are quickly approaching open enrollment which starts on November 1st and ends on December 15th. To see prices for these plans, you should speak with a health insurance broker who can provide you with quotes and help you enroll for no additional cost.
