A Dedicated Account Manager
At NBS, we assign you with a highly experienced insurance professional dedicated to offering customized consultations and innovative approaches to your employee benefits package.

Mineral Portal
The Mineral portal is for NBS employer clients only. It provides tools and guidance needed to prepare for and manage day-to-day people risks.Click here to learn more.

Compliance Audits
NBS will conduct a comprehensive review of your compliance obligations under the applicable state and federal laws and offer strategies to mitigate potential lapses.

Claims
We have dedicated claims specialists to handle all escalated claims issues, including coordinating with providers, pharmacies, and out-of-state payers, as well as exhausting all levels of internal and external appeals.

Administration Services
We partner with TPAs to provide COBRA compliance, HRA/FSA/POP administration and DOL compliance assistance.

Detailed Market Analysis
We conduct a thorough market review of all potential options in both the group and individual markets. We are certified to assist with packages both on and off the federal exchange. We also have contracts with various private exchanges to design a package that best fits your coverage and budget needs.

1. What's the difference between a PPO and an EPO plan?
PPO stands for preferred provider organization. PPO plans give you flexibility. You don't need a primary care physician. You can go to any healthcare professional you want without a referral — inside or outside of your network. Staying inside your network means smaller copays and applicable coverage for eligible services. If you choose to go outside your network, you'll have higher out-of-pocket costs.

EPO stands for exclusive provider organization. EPO plans combine the flexibility of PPO plans with the cost-savings of HMO plans. In most plans, you won't need to choose a primary care physician, and you don't need referrals to see a specialist. But you'll have a limited network of doctors and hospitals to choose from. And EPO plans don't cover care outside your network unless it's an emergency. It's important to know who participates in your EPO plan's network. If you go to a doctor or hospital that doesn't accept your plan, you'll pay all costs.

2. What constitutes a full-time employee for a NJ small group?
As defined in the NJ Small Employer Health Guide, eligible employee means a full-time, bona fide employee who works a normal workweek of 25 or more hours. The term excludes a sole proprietor, a partner of a partnership, or an independent contractor. Eligible employee excludes both spouses in a spouse owned business. Eligible employee also excludes employees who work fewer than 25 hours a week, employees who work on a temporary or substitute basis, and employees participating in an employee welfare arrangement pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement.

3. Do I NEED to provide health insurance to my employees?
By the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA), employers with fewer than 50 FTE workers are not required to offer health insurance to their employees. There are no taxes or penalties. Tax credits may be available if you want to offer health insurance to your employees.

The small business healthcare tax credit benefits employers that:

• Have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees
• Pay an average wage of less than $56,000 a year
• Pay at least half of employee health insurance premiums

You are not required to do anything — you have choices. If your business has 50 or more FTE employees, your business is considered a large employer under the ACA. If you don't offer health insurance, you may be penalized. There are certain requirements that have to be met before your large business is penalized.

4. How many employees do I need to have for a group plan and what percentage needs to enrollment?
To offer group health insurance you must have at least two full-time eligible employees including yourself (see above for clarification on who is a full-time employee). At least 75 percent of the eligible employees must be covered under the small employer health benefits plan. The employer is offering or covered under on of the following:

1. Any full insurance health benefits plan offered by the employer
2. Medicare
3. Medicaid or NJ FamilyCare
4. Another group health benefits plan
5. A spouse's group health benefits plan
6. Tricare

Note that coverage under an individual health benefits plan does not count toward satisfaction of the 75% participation requirement unless you are getting a subsidy.

A carrier is not required to give participation credit for those eligible employees who are covered under another carrier's contract issued to the same employer.

5. As an HR manager, how much control do I have over benefits selection with NBS?
You are in the driver's seat and we are your co-pilot. Through a fact-finding collaboration between yourself and a seasoned NBS employee together we can navigate to find the best fit for your company. Whether we test the self-insured water or pick a traditional fully insured plan, you will be presented all your options with different strategies attached to each type of plan to help deliver the highest level of benefits desired at the best price point. We can be as hands-on or hands-off as you wish!