It's Time to Check Up on Your Insurance PolicyRising premiums could be a problem for businesses, but that doesn't mean companies can't provide for workers. Find out what options you have to remedy the issue.

Many employers may not start thinking about health insurance until this fall, when open enrollment begins creeping up. But if your premiums got bumped up a bunch this year -- and mine sure did! -- you know that next year will almost certainly be just as bad. It's time to start thinking about this now, because there are two big options you should at least explore.

OPTION #1

Stipends. If you have fewer than 50 full-time equivalent employees, you aren't mandated to provide insurance to them. However, if you do provide insurance, you'll have to pay a significant portion of their premiums -- in some cases more than 50 percent, says Cindy Brenke, a risk adviser at IBTX Risk Services, a business insurance provider in San Antonio, Tex. So, what's a small-business owner to do, if you'd like to provide for your employees but want to protect yourself from rising costs?