Thanks to runaway costs and cookie-cutter plans more suited for large corporations, many small and mid-sized business owners have found themselves increasingly frustrated with their health care coverage over the past few years. But recently two of the largest health care providers rolled out new plans aimed specifically at satisfying the needs of financially strapped smaller businesses. These more affordable plans offer a lifeline to companies struggling to maintain their current health care coverage against the ever-rising tide of premiums, but it’s worth pointing out that these plans carve out savings primarily by shifting more of the cost burden onto the shoulders of your employees.

Guardian Life’s “Premium Protect” plan A preferred-provider (PPO) plan, “Premium Protect” debuted in October and is currently available in New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia as well as the Washington, D.C., Chicago, and New York metro areas. To enroll, Guardian requires companies with between 51 to 150 employees to sign a two-year commitment and promises to limit premium increases in the plan’s second year to 0%, 6%, or 9%. The package also includes a prescription drug benefit, vision care discounts, and wellness resources.

But how, exactly, is Guardian able to keep premiums under control and still make money? First, it charges employers a sliding fee of between 3 and 4% at the plan’s inception. And while the plan reins in premium costs for both employer and employee, it allows for aggressive increases in employee annual deduct-ibles—up to $1,000 for both in-network and out-ofnetwork physician and hospital visits— and co-payments—as much as $15 per visit—in the plan’s second year. For more on “Premium Protect,” go to guardianlife.com.

Humana’s “No Worry” plan Starting this month, Humana will begin offering its three-year “No Worry” plan to companies with 51 to 99 employees in 17 states across the South and Midwest. Humana, too, caps premium increases after the first year of coverage, at either 6% or 4.5% (the latter rate requires bundling dental coverage into a “No Worry” plan or getting 90 percent of your employees to complete a health-risk assessment). Additionally, Humana lets employers choose from among 28 different three-year packages, all of which transition from PPO-based coverage in year one to a consumer-directed (CDHP) or high deductible health plan (HDHP) by year three.

Again, there are a number of caveats. Canceling the policy before the three-year term expires, for example, triggers a stiff $25,000 penalty. And to qualify for the basic plan, Humana requires that employers provide the phone numbers and email addresses of at least 75% of their covered employees (so the company can send out one-on-one “health coaching” calls and emails, according to a Humana spokesman). And, similar to the Guardian plan, Humana retains the right to ratchet up employees’ annual deductibles considerably—anywhere from $500 to $2,500 by the plan’s third year. For more information, check out humana-noworry.com.