A benefits program built around your people.
We design and administer full employee benefits programs for California employers. Independent, carrier-agnostic, and coordinated with the payroll and HR systems you already run. Because we started in payroll, our consultative approach covers not just your benefits — but how you manage your employees day to day.
Every line, one advisor.
One point of contact for the entire program. No handoffs, no finger-pointing, no "that's a different rep."
Medical
Fully insured, level-funded, partially self-funded, and self-funded plans — HMO, PPO, EPO, HSA-qualified across every major California carrier, designed to your workforce demographics and risk tolerance.
Dental
Standalone and bundled plans, PPO and DHMO networks, orthodontia riders where they make sense.
Vision
VSP, EyeMed, and carrier-integrated vision — with an eye on utilization, not just price per employee.
Life & AD&D
Basic, voluntary, and executive carve-out life — placed with carriers who actually pay claims cleanly.
Disability
Short-term and long-term disability integrated with California SDI, PFL, and your leave policies.
Voluntary & Worksite
Accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity, pet, legal, identity — curated, not stacked.
FSA / HSA
Pre-tax health savings and flexible spending accounts coordinated with your payroll platform.
Benefit Administration Support Services
We work with your existing Human Capital Management or Benefit Administration solutions — like Navigator — to provide a comprehensive level of service that covers enrollment, compliance, and ongoing support without replacing the systems your team already relies on.
Under 100 Employees
All California companies with 100 or fewer employees on fully insured ACA-compliant plans get the same rates from carriers — shopping brokers won't change your price. What matters is expertise and service.
- New-hire enrollment and life event changes
- Open enrollment strategy, materials, and meetings
- Employee education & decision support
- Access to Navigator or similar benefit administration applications, customized for your company
- Compliance calendar with proactive alerts
- Carrier billing reconciliation quarterly
- NoteCOBRA administration, notices, and ACA reporting (1094-C / 1095-C) are handled by the carrier for companies with over 50 full-time equivalent employees. IRS guidance on employer 1095-C reporting responsibilities →
Large Group (100+ / Self-Funded / Level-Funded)
Custom plan design, claims analysis, and direct rate negotiation. We run the full back office so your HR team isn't buried in admin.
- New-hire enrollment and life event changes
- Open enrollment strategy, materials, and meetings
- Custom plan design and benchmarking
- Annual renewal marketing and negotiation
- Access to Navigator or similar benefit administration applications, customized for your company
- COBRA administration and notices
- ACA reporting (1094-C / 1095-C) and 5500 filings
- Compliance calendar with proactive alerts
- Carrier billing reconciliation quarterly
A 90-day playbook, not a scramble.
Open enrollment is the single biggest lever on participation, HSA adoption, and employee sentiment about their benefits. We run it like a product launch — timeline, communication cadence, decision-support, and post-OE audit.
90–60 days out
Renewal goals, census refresh, plan design modeling, ACA affordability test.
60–30 days out
Lock lineup, refresh SBC/SPD/Part D notices, load ben-admin, dry-run elections.
OE window
Announcement, 3+ reminders, live sessions, daily completion dashboard.
After OE
Invoice reconciliation, EDI confirmation, payroll audit, 30-day debrief.
Bring us your current plans — we'll show you the picture no one else does.
Questions California employers ask us.
- How do I choose an employee benefits broker in California?
- Look for independence (not captive to one carrier), California-specific compliance depth (SDI, PFL, CalSavers), true administration capability beyond quoting, and clear ownership of open enrollment, COBRA, ACA reporting, and carrier billing. Since every licensed broker gets the same filed rates for 5 to 500-employee groups, service and administration are the real differentiators.
- What benefits are employers required to offer in California?
- California requires employers to provide State Disability Insurance (SDI), Paid Family Leave (PFL), workers' comp, paid sick leave, and (at 5+ employees) a retirement option via CalSavers or a qualified plan. Medical is required under ACA at 50+ full-time employees. Blue Ocean handles design, placement, and ongoing compliance for the full stack.
- Do you handle open enrollment and employee communications?
- Yes — we run open enrollment as a 90-day playbook: goals, census refresh, plan modeling, ACA affordability testing, ben-admin loading, announcements, live sessions, and a post-OE audit including invoice reconciliation and payroll validation.
- Can Blue Ocean work with our existing HCM (Human Capital Management) system or ben-admin platform?
- Yes. We integrate with existing HCM (Human Capital Management) and ben-admin systems — like Navigator, Employee Navigator, isolved, Paylocity, ADP, Rippling, and others — and can consult on platform selection if you're evaluating a change.