Sound Insurance Brokerage Group
Insurance Solutions for Businesses and Individuals
Employee Benefits Strategy for Maryland Employers
We help Maryland businesses control rising health plan costs, simplify renewals, and build benefits packages that help attract and keep good people — backed by decades of local, independent brokerage experience.
Who We Serve
We work with business owners, HR leads, and office managers who are responsible for group benefits but don't have a full benefits department behind them. Most of our clients run companies with anywhere from a handful of employees to a few hundred, across professional services, healthcare, construction, nonprofits, and manufacturing.
If you're the person who gets the renewal email and has to figure out what it means for your team and your budget, that's who we built this for.
The Problems We Solve
Renewal decisions deserve more than guesswork. These are the four challenges we hear most often from Maryland business owners before they begin working with us.
Premiums increase each renewal without a clear explanation
Costs rise annually, and the increases are rarely tied back to your organization's actual claims experience or workforce makeup.
Comparing plan options requires time and expertise
Carrier proposals are often lengthy and technical, making it difficult to evaluate true value across networks and plan designs.
HR teams are stretched thin with limited compliance support
ACA, ERISA, and COBRA regulations carry real risk, yet most small businesses lack a dedicated resource to track every requirement.
Employees often underutilize or undervalue their benefits
A strong benefits package only supports retention when employees fully understand and consistently make use of what is offered.
Our Renewal & Cost-Control Approach
A process that runs year-round, not just at renewal. We start working your renewal months before the deadline, so decisions are made on data, not on a deadline.
Benchmark & Review
We audit your current plan, claims experience, and rates against comparable Maryland employers.
Market to Carriers
We take your group to multiple carriers, not just your incumbent, to create real competition on price.
Model Plan Design
We test fully insured, level-funded, and plan-design alternatives side by side against your budget.
Monitor & Adjust
Throughout the year we track performance so next renewal is a review, not a scramble.
Funding Your Plan
Two ways to structure your coverage — we'll help you pick the right one.
There's no single right answer. It depends on your group size, claims history, and appetite for risk. We walk you through both.
Fully Insured
You pay a fixed monthly premium and the carrier assumes the risk of your group's claims. Predictable, straightforward, and easy to budget for.
▪ Fixed monthly premium, set at renewal
▪ Carrier absorbs high-claims risk
▪ Simplest option to administer
▪ Rates are set by group-wide experience
Best fit: groups that want budget certainty and minimal risk exposure
Level-Funded
You pay a predictable monthly amount that combines claims funding, administration, and stop-loss protection — with the potential for a refund if claims run low.
▪ Predictable monthly cost, stop-loss protected
▪ Potential refund if group claims are favorable
▪ More visibility into where your premium goes
▪ Often a strong fit for healthier groups
Best fit: groups seeking more cost control and claims transparency
Why Maryland Employers Choose SIBG
▪ Independent, not captive
We're not tied to one insurance company, so every recommendation is based on what fits your group, not a quota.
▪ Local & family-led
Based in Frederick and led by Anthony J. Bruscia, we know the Maryland market and answer our own phones.
▪ Direct access, not a call center
You work with the same advisor at renewal, at enrollment, and every time an employee has a claims question.
The Specialists Behind
Behind every recommendation we make is a team committed to doing things the right way—through education, transparency, and genuine care for the people we serve. At Sound Insurance Brokerage Group, our approach is shaped by decades of experience and a leadership philosophy that puts your long-term security first.