Group Health Insurance Broker
Vyral is an independent group health insurance broker for companies with 20 to 500 employees. We take your census to the carriers in your states, price the funding structures your group actually qualifies for, and run the PEO market in parallel, so you can see every option side by side before you renew. No fee to your business.
Get my renewal shopped What a broker should be doing
What a group health insurance broker is supposed to do
Brokers are typically paid through commissions already built into your premium, whether or not they do the work below, and since December 2021 federal law has required brokers to disclose that compensation in writing to the employer's group health plan. So the fair question is not what a broker costs. It is what yours is doing.
| At renewal, a broker should | What too often happens instead |
|---|---|
| Request and review your claims experience | Nobody asks the carrier for it |
| Market your group to competing carriers | The incumbent renewal is passed along as the answer |
| Price alternative funding structures | Fully insured is the only structure ever shown |
| Model plan design and contribution changes | A single spreadsheet arrives days before open enrollment |
| Give you a recommendation with a reason | You are given options and left to guess |
| Handle enrollment, billing and claims issues all year | You hear from them once a year |
Where Vyral is different
Most group health brokers shop carriers. That is the job as it has been done for thirty years, and for many companies it is enough. The problem is that carriers are no longer the only market.
We run two searches on one census:
- The open insurance market. Fully insured plans from carriers licensed in your states, level funded plans where your group can be underwritten, and self funded structures where your size and claims history support them.
- The PEO market. More than 40 professional employer organizations, where your employees would join a master plan under a co employment arrangement.
Then both come back on one comparison, restated on the same model. Most employers have never seen those two markets priced against each other, because almost nobody is licensed and motivated to do both.
The funding question, which is where the money usually is
| Structure | Who holds the risk | Who keeps a good year | Typically fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fully insured | Carrier | Carrier | Groups with unknown or poor claims history, or who want zero variability |
| Level funded | Shared, with stop loss | Your company, through a possible surplus refund | Healthier groups that can pass underwriting |
| Self funded | Your company, with stop loss | Your company | Larger, more stable groups with real claims credibility |
| PEO master plan | The PEO's pool | The pool | Groups whose own risk prices worse than the pool, and multi state teams |
Per the Kaiser Family Foundation 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey, 37% of covered workers at firms with 10 to 199 employees are already in level funded plans. If nobody has shown you one, you have been shown a fraction of your market.
What this looks like in practice
1. One census and your current plan documents
Census, current rates, contribution structure, plan summaries, and claims experience if you have it. If you do not, we request it.
2. We market the group
Carriers in your states, level funded underwriting where the group qualifies, and the PEO market in parallel. You are not in those conversations, which is the point.
3. One comparison, one recommendation
Every option restated on the same model against what you pay today, with the employee cost impact shown, not just the company cost. Then a recommendation with the reasoning attached.
4. Implementation and the rest of the year
Enrollment, carrier setup, and the billing and claims problems that come up in month four. Then we start next year's analysis before your renewal is released, not after.
When to start
Carriers typically release renewals 90 to 120 days before the plan year, and letters reach employers 60 to 90 days out. Level funded underwriting takes time, and a broker of record change takes processing time at the carrier plus whatever time is needed to actually market the group.
For a January 1 plan year, the useful window closes at the end of October. After that you are negotiating rather than shopping.
Frequently asked questions
What does a group health insurance broker cost?
There is no fee to your business. Broker compensation is typically already built into the premium your company pays today, whether or not your current broker markets your renewal. The amount varies by broker and arrangement, and federal law requires it to be disclosed in writing to your group health plan.
How do I change group health insurance brokers?
A one page broker of record letter to your carrier. It moves who services and is paid on the policy, and it does not change your plan, your rates, your carrier or your renewal date. Processing time varies by carrier. Blue Shield of California, for example, asks brokers to allow 7 to 10 business days for small group changes submitted online.
Can you work with our existing carrier?
Yes. A change of broker does not change your coverage. In some cases the right answer is to stay with the same carrier on renegotiated terms, and we will tell you when that is the case.
Do you work with companies in multiple states?
Yes, and multi state groups are where this work usually pays off most, because carrier availability, state mandates and unemployment insurance all differ by state.
What size companies do you work with?
20 to 500 employees. Below 20 the options narrow considerably. Above 500 many companies are already self funded and working with a consultant.
Is a PEO better than buying our own group plan?
It depends on your claims history. Under ACA small group rules, which generally apply only to employers with 50 or fewer employees (up to 100 where a state has chosen that), a carrier may rate your plan only on age, geography, family size and tobacco use, not on your actual claims. A PEO master plan is rated as part of a much larger group. If your real risk is worse than those four factors suggest, the pool can work in your favor. If it is better, the pool can cost you. That is why we price both.
How long does the process take?
About two to three weeks from a complete census to a full comparison, depending on how quickly carriers and PEOs return underwriting.
See what the market would actually charge you
Send one census and your current plan summary. You will get your renewal, the open market and the PEO market on one page, with a recommendation.
Related pages
- Employee Benefits Broker
- Is Your Health Insurance Renewal Increase Normal?
- Broker of Record Letter
- Knowledge Center
Sources
- KFF, 2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey, Plan Funding section: level funded and self funded enrollment by firm size.
- 45 CFR 147.102, fair health insurance premiums: the rating factors allowed in the individual and small group markets.
- 45 CFR 144.103, definitions of small employer and large employer.
- 45 CFR 147.106(f)(2): small group carriers must send written renewal notice at least 60 calendar days before renewal.
- U.S. Department of Labor, Field Assistance Bulletin 2021-03, and ERISA section 408(b)(2)(B), 29 U.S.C. 1108(b)(2)(B): broker compensation disclosure for group health plans, widened on February 3, 2026 by Public Law 119-75, section 6702(c), which replaced "brokerage services" with "services (including brokerage services)".
- Blue Shield of California, broker of record change FAQ.
- UnitedHealthcare, Level Funded plans: surplus refund terms.