ICHRA

Coverage You Control

Explore employer health benefits with predictable costs and personalized employee health plans. Find out if an ICHRA is right for you.

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ICHRA 101

Your introduction to ICHRAs — a new alternative to group health insurance.

  • ICHRAs are a new approach to employer-sponsored health benefits
  • Rather than a group insurance plan, each employee chooses their own insurance, subsidized by a pre-tax employer contribution
  • ICHRA stands for Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement 

ICHRAs are for Employers Who:

  • Have unaffordable coverage or unsustainable increases to their health insurance premiums
  • Have a diverse workforce with different healthcare needs
  • Want to offer health benefits/more choice to attract talent
  • Have workers in multiple states without a single-carrier solution
  • No longer wish to manage health risk among their workforce

  • Group insurance can be prohibitively expensive for some businesses and/or bring unsustainable increases in premiums each year
  • Group insurance forces employees to pick from a limited selection of plans that might not fit their needs — especially in diverse workforces
  • ICHRAs change that by making health coverage expenses more predictable (and in many cases more affordable), and by making health plans personalized for each employee’s needs
  • As a group insurance alternative, ICHRA benefits mean flexible and affordable health coverage for employers and employees

Because they’re a new form of insurance, most people wonder about how to set up an ICHRA. The ICHRA administration process is actually fairly straightforward. 

How it works:

  1. Select a Benefits Platform  — Benefits platforms act as an administrator, coordinating transactions, providing decision support to employees, and serving as a place to enroll.
  2. Define Your Contribution — Set your overall budget and the pre-tax contribution you’ll make to each eligible employee class.
  3. Employees Shop Marketplace Plans & Enroll — Employees shop plans based on their own unique needs and enroll through your chosen benefits platform.
  4. Employees Get Reimbursed — Employees are reimbursed for health coverage based on employer-defined contributions.

ICHRAs, as described in the 2019 Final Rule (2019-12571, 84 FR 28888) and its attendant federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

How ICHRAs Compare to Group Health Plans
 

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ICHRAs Make Costs Predictable

Despite collective buying power, group insurance often comes with high costs and unpredictable annual increases. With an ICHRA, there are plan options for every budget and more predictable costs from year to year (thanks to a larger risk pool and the ability to confidently budget your pre-tax contributions for employee coverage).

ICHRAs Make Plans Personal

If each employee’s circumstances and healthcare needs are unique to them, shouldn’t their coverage be as well? Group insurance means buying coverage from a single carrier and providing a few limited plan options for employees. With an ICHRA, employees can buy any plan from any carrier on the marketplace (including our competitors). This allows each employee to balance the coverage and plan features they want with the costs they’re able or willing to pay.

Person loving their plan.
Person unlocking lock with key.

ICHRAs Make Coverage Possible

Just 56% of small businesses in the US offer health insurance. With more options that can be more affordable and require less hands-on administration, ICHRAs can help more employers provide insurance. And momentum is building. From 2023 to 2024, the number of businesses offering an ICHRA grew by nearly 30%.

Source: HRA Council - Growth Trends ICHRA & QSEHRA

Good to Know

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ICHRAs Keep Employers ACA-Compliant

ICHRAs are designed to comply with the employer mandate of the Affordable Care Act, assuming certain affordability conditions are met.

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ICHRAs Make Insurance Portable

Employees can maintain their health coverage even if they leave the company.

America’s #1 Marketplace Health Insurance

With an ICHRA, employees can buy any plan from any carrier on the marketplace— including our competitors. See why over 5.4 million members have each chosen Ambetter Health on the marketplace.

 

 

Talk With Our Team

Considering an ICHRA raises new questions. Our team is here to help.