Ares Benefit Group helps employers compare an Individual Coverage HRA with a group health plan, and then decide whether PeopleKeep is the right administrator for that design. PeopleKeep describes ICHRA administration software that helps employers reimburse employees, tax-free, for individual health insurance premiums and other eligible medical expenses. Ares is a benefits advisor, not an HRA administrator, and is not appointed by or endorsed by PeopleKeep.
The federal rules stay on ICHRA and ICHRA vs QSEHRA. This page explains PeopleKeep's official role. It is not tax, legal, or insurance advice, and it is not an offer of coverage. We do not repeat PeopleKeep's reimbursement-volume figures, customer counts, or comparisons that describe group coverage as too expensive. An ICHRA and a group plan can each be the right fit.
Request a proposal or call (813) 540-1299. Our agents are licensed in all 50 states.What PeopleKeep is
On its official ICHRA product page, PeopleKeep describes a process the employer and employees move through together:
- The employer creates a PeopleKeep account and provides company details, including the number of W-2 employees eligible for the ICHRA, which PeopleKeep says it uses to generate legal plan documents.
- The employer designs the benefit: a start date, allowance amounts, optional employee classes, and whether reimbursements are for insurance premiums only or for premiums plus out-of-pocket medical expenses. Official class examples include full-time, part-time, seasonal, salaried, non-salaried, and state-based classes.
- The employer invites employees and launches the benefit. Employees can opt in or out, and PeopleKeep describes an interactive tool to help them decide.
- Employees can shop for health insurance and ancillary policies from their PeopleKeep dashboard and can meet with PeopleKeep's in-house benefits advisors for enrollment.
- Employees who opt in submit documentation, such as a receipt, and attest that they have qualifying individual health coverage. PeopleKeep says its documentation-review team reviews reimbursement requests for IRS compliance and notifies the employer when an expense has been verified, after which the employer can approve the amount and reimburse the employee through payroll or by cash or check.
PeopleKeep also states that the software gives employers access to legal plan documents to help comply with IRS and ERISA rules, and that organizations of all sizes can use an ICHRA, including as a way for an employer with 50 or more full-time-equivalent employees to offer a health benefit in connection with the employer coverage requirement. The coverage-requirement rules themselves stay on employer health insurance requirement. PeopleKeep does not replace that federal test.
PeopleKeep's official FAQs say the software helps employers administer their own HRA, and that invoices include a one-time setup fee, a monthly base fee, and a monthly per-employee fee, with no hidden fees in PeopleKeep's wording, and that payment may be by credit card or ACH. We will not publish a typical fee. Compare the actual service agreement.
PeopleKeep also notes that its parent company, Remodel Health, offers enhanced support. That is a PeopleKeep description of an affiliated service, not an Ares recommendation of one vendor over another.
How PeopleKeep sits next to a group plan
An ICHRA can run next to a group medical plan for another class of employees when the federal class rules allow it. PeopleKeep's official class list, including part-time and state-based classes, maps naturally onto part-time employee benefits and multi-state employees. A company might keep a Florida Blue, UnitedHealthcare, or AvMed plan for one class and use a PeopleKeep-administered ICHRA for another, if the classes are permitted. We will only recommend a split the ICHRA rules allow.
A standalone ICHRA remains a fit for some groups. A SHOP policy, a level-funded plan, or a fully insured small-group plan can each remain the cleaner fit for others. We will put the structures that actually apply on one proposal.
How PeopleKeep compares with Take Command and Thatch
Take Command officially administers both ICHRAs and QSEHRAs, and describes ICHRA administration as something that can sit alongside group insurance. Thatch officially administers the ICHRA with a set health budget and employee plan choice on its platform, and describes itself as broker of record for those individual policies. PeopleKeep officially emphasizes plan-document generation, employee shopping and attestation, and employer reimbursement of expenses its team has verified. Those are different official descriptions of administration work. We do not name a winner. See the ICHRA administrators hub.
What we need for a proposal
PeopleKeep's official process, in which the employer reimburses verified expenses through payroll or by cash or check, is also a payroll and Section 125 conversation. We will keep reimbursement timing and cafeteria-plan rules in the proposal so the administration software and the payroll design are aligned.
We need a census, worksite states, the current plan or HRA, the renewal date, and whether you want premiums-only reimbursements or premiums plus other eligible expenses. Start with a proposal so the design is clear, then select administration that fits. Request a proposal or call (813) 540-1299.Frequently asked questions
Is PeopleKeep an insurance carrier?
No. PeopleKeep officially describes ICHRA administration software. Employees enroll in individual coverage, attest to that coverage, and request reimbursement of eligible expenses.
Can organizations of any size use it?
PeopleKeep officially says organizations of all sizes can use an ICHRA. The federal ICHRA rules, not the vendor, decide eligibility. A QSEHRA has a different statutory cap; see QSEHRA.
What does the employer still do?
In PeopleKeep's official process, you design the allowances and classes, invite employees, and reimburse expenses after PeopleKeep has verified them.
Can we use PeopleKeep next to a group medical plan?
Yes, when the federal class rules allow an ICHRA for one class and a group plan for another. Confirm the design on the ICHRA page and on a proposal.
Can business owners participate?
PeopleKeep's official FAQs discuss owner eligibility in the HRA context and note limits for certain S-corporation owners in a QSEHRA. Confirm owner questions with your tax advisor.
Who should we call first?
Start with a proposal so the design is clear, then select administration that fits.
Ready for a proposal?