AvMed small-group plans for Florida employers

It is not tax, legal, or insurance advice, and it is not an offer of coverage. AvMed's own materials say product availability depends on the employer's headquarters location. We will confirm current county lists and contract names on a proposal rather than invent a service-area map.

AvMed on Florida's 2026 small-group list

For policies effective on or after January 1, 2026, the Florida Department of Financial Services lists Av-Med, Inc., as an HMO marketer on the small-group ACA carrier list. The DFS phone number for AvMed on that list is 1-800-882-8633, and the listed website is avmed.org. Small-group health plans on that list are for employers with 1 to 50 full-time-equivalent employees. Plans may be available through SHOP, off SHOP, or both. County-level and on- or off-SHOP detail is on the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation federal health insurance tables, which we will check at quote time.

AvMed's employer materials describe small-group products for 2 to 50 employees. Ares's practical core is the same 2-to-50 range, inside Florida's official 1-to-50 FTE test.

What to ask about on a Florida quote

Ask about the three official small-group families on AvMed's 2–50 page:

• Elect (HMO) — select network, primary care physician, no specialist referral required, described by AvMed as available throughout 52 Florida counties, subject to headquarters location.
• Flex (POS) — select network, primary care physician, no specialist referral required, out-of-network benefit that AvMed describes as nationwide access to non-AvMed providers, described as available in 22 Florida counties, subject to headquarters location.
• Elite (POS) — select network, primary care physician, no specialist referral required, the same official out-of-network benefit, described as available throughout 52 Florida counties, subject to headquarters location.

Those county figures are AvMed's current published descriptions. They can change, and they are not a substitute for the OIR tables or for a provider search. We will confirm both on the quote. AvMed already publishes 2026 and 2027 small-group plan and SBC documents for these families; the document for the plan code on the quote is the right place to read cost sharing.

AvMed also describes a level-funded product for 5 to 250 employees and large-group products for 51 or more, including an Aim plan that AvMed describes for South Florida employers with 51 to 99 eligible employees in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. Those are mid-size and large-group conversations; see mid-size business health insurance and large-group health insurance.

How to check a doctor or hospital in Florida

The OIR county tables show whether AvMed is offering small-group coverage in a given county on or off SHOP. They do not replace a provider search.

SHOP versus off-SHOP

As with the other carriers on the DFS list, an AvMed small-group plan may be on SHOP, off SHOP, or both, depending on the county and the current OIR tables. A SHOP policy, when the employer qualifies, is generally the path to the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit for eligible employers. We will show the paths that actually apply.

How AvMed compares with Florida Blue and UnitedHealthcare

All three brands are on the 2026 Florida list, which is why a complete Florida proposal often includes more than one of them.

Florida Blue publishes BlueCare, BlueOptions, BlueSelect, and SimplyBlue, and offers fully insured or balanced-funded options. UnitedHealthcare in Florida is the place to ask about Choice, Choice Plus, and Navigate, with the Florida contract name confirmed on the quote. AvMed's official families emphasize a primary care physician, do not require a specialist referral, and — on Flex and Elite — include an out-of-network benefit.

For a Tampa-only workforce, the deciding facts are usually the official directories for the networks actually quoted, plus the bids. For a multi-state workforce, Flex and Elite's official nationwide out-of-network benefit is useful context, and it is still not a nationwide in-network. We will read the contracts. A side-by-side of Florida Blue and UnitedHealthcare official facts is on Florida Blue vs UnitedHealthcare. We do not name a winner among the three, and we do not publish a typical premium.

Other structures still belong on the same proposal when they fit: a level-funded plan, an ICHRA, or a QSEHRA.

What we need for a proposal

We need a census, the employer's headquarters location, the Florida counties or ZIP codes, any other worksite states, the current plan or funding type, and the renewal date. Headquarters location matters because AvMed ties product availability to it.