Insurance Agents & Brokers in Pennsylvania

An insurance broker helps an employer assess benefit needs, compare available carrier and plan options, and select a coverage strategy that fits its budget and workforce. Franklin Benefits Group also supports renewals, employee communications, contribution strategies, claims issues, and compliance-related tasks. The goal is to provide ongoing guidance rather than simply presenting a quote once a year.

Yes. Employers can generally appoint a new broker during the plan year by completing a Broker of Record letter; changing brokers does not necessarily require changing the existing insurance plan or waiting for renewal. Franklin Benefits Group can then conduct market analysis, obtain carrier quotes where appropriate, and provide ongoing advisory support while your current coverage remains in place.

A broker can help design core and supplemental benefits, including group health insurance, dental, vision, life insurance, disability coverage, health savings accounts, health reimbursement arrangements, and voluntary benefits. Franklin Benefits Group also assists with funding approaches such as fully insured, level-funded, self-funded, and ICHRA arrangements. Recommendations are based on workforce needs, contribution goals, and administrative capacity.

With a fully insured plan, the employer pays a set premium and the carrier assumes claim risk. With a self-funded plan, the employer assumes more direct responsibility for claims and often uses stop-loss coverage to limit large losses. Self-funding can offer design flexibility and reduced insurance overhead, but it requires a careful review of risk tolerance, cash flow, and administration.

Franklin Benefits Group provides personalized reviews of Original Medicare, Medicare Supplement plans, Medicare Advantage plans, and Part D prescription drug coverage. The review considers your doctors, preferred hospitals, medications, provider networks, formularies, prior authorization rules, travel habits, premiums, and potential out-of-pocket costs. Medicare Annual Enrollment Period support is also available through the PlanEnroll platform.

Voluntary benefits are optional products offered alongside core benefits, such as accident, hospital indemnity, cancer, vision, disability, pet insurance, or supplemental life coverage. In many programs, employees pay 100% of premiums while gaining access to group rates and payroll deduction convenience. Some products may be portable, allowing employees to keep coverage if they leave the employer.

Yes. Franklin Benefits Group offers tools and support for benefits administration, online enrollment, onboarding, training, reporting, ACA documentation, COBRA administration, ERISA plan documents, Section 125 materials, and 5500 reporting. The available HR resources also include job-description, interview, compensation, and performance-review tools. Specific compliance obligations should always be reviewed in light of your organization’s plan and circumstances.

Costs vary by coverage type and arrangement. For many employer-sponsored insurance products, brokers are compensated by carriers through commissions rather than a separate employer fee. Premiums and total costs depend on factors such as plan design, workforce size, location, employee contributions, and selected carriers. Franklin Benefits Group can explain how compensation applies to the options being considered.