Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue and other state lawmakers recently unveiled a health insurance bill that makes health insurance for small businesses more affordable. The new measure also gives small firms a tax incentive to get employees to enroll in coverage.
Small businesses, 50 or fewer employees, would get a $250 tax credit for every employee that enrolls in a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), reported the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
Plans qualify as a HDHP if the deductible is at least $1,100 for individuals and $2,200 for families.
The Georgia health insurance bill would also allow any resident enrolled in a HDHP to deduct health insurance premiums from their state tax return.
“This is a market based solution focused on empowering individuals and rewarding them for making healthy choices, ” said state Senator and author of the bill, Judson Hill.
One nice advantage of a HDHP is the low premiums. For most health plans, when the deductible goes up, the monthly premiums go down.
Many HDHPs also provide coverage for preventive care.
Another feature of a high-deductible plan is the Health Savings Account, or HSA. An HSA lets you take pre-tax income and put it into a savings account to help pay for health care expenses.
Here’s a list of qualified HSA expenses from the Internal Revenue Service, starting on page 5.
“This plan will make affordable health insurance more accessible for the uninsured and working families, ” Senator Hill also said.