Megan is president of an accounting firm that has 10 employees. The only employee benefit provided by the firm is a paid 2-week vacation for employees with one or more years if service. The firm’s profits have substantially increased, and Meagan would like to provide some additional benefits to the employees. Megan needs advice concerning the types of benefits to provide. Assume you are an employee benefits consultant. Based on the following considerations, answer the following questions:

a. Megan would like to provide health insurance benefits to the employees. Describe briefly the major types of managed care plans that she might consider.

b. Assume that Megan is considering both a preferred provider organization (PPO) and a health maintenance organization plan (HMO). Explain the major differences between these two plans to Megan.

c. Are there any other group health insurance benefits that Megan might consider? Explain your answer.

d. Megan is concerned that rising healthcare costs may result in an increased financial burden to the firm. Describe a group heath care plan that Megan might consider to deal with the problem of rising healthcare costs.