Item — HN Reader

Short term health insurance doesn't offer much protection, and most accelerators are aimed at a short term commitment.

However, I'd think it would be great if an accelerator would act as an umbrella organization, letting startups buy cheaper health insurance while small, through aggregation, even after the initial accelerator commitment is done.

1 comments

You can already do that now. My startup of 2 people just got a group policy from Blue Cross Blue Shield. Outside of NY and California, those policies could be had for as little as $500 per month (that's total, for two people.) In NJ/NY, we're paying about $900 per month for 3 people. (we have one child on the plan as a dependent.) If the average accelerator gives you $20K for three months, then spend $2000-$3000 and buy insurance for those three months.

Most people don't know enough about health insurance (because they're usually getting it from their employer) but getting group insurance is possible even with a "group" of just 2. You just have to do your homework.

Perhaps something accelerators could do is perhaps provide some guidance on the HR side of startups, including how to deal with employee benefits.