Davie is Florida's most populous town — not city — with a 2020 census population of 110,320 in Broward County, approximately 24 miles north of Miami. Its distinction as a community is the presence of Nova Southeastern University, whose College of Health Care Sciences trains physical therapists, physician assistants, occupational therapists, and other allied health professionals. This creates a concentrated local labor pipeline for PT clinics in Davie: a steady supply of new graduates entering the job market, offset by practices throughout South Broward and Miami-Dade competing to hire the same talent.
For physical therapy clinic owners in Davie, open enrollment is not just a compliance exercise — it is a talent retention tool in a market where recent NSU PT graduates have multiple offers within a few miles of campus. A competitive, clearly communicated benefit package is part of what keeps your best therapists from accepting roles elsewhere.
NSU's physical therapy programs graduate students who are actively recruited before they complete clinical rotations. In this market, a PT clinic that communicates its benefit offering clearly and professionally — during a formal, organized open enrollment process — signals to candidates and current staff alike that it operates with the competence of a larger employer. Practices that present benefits in an organized, well-documented open enrollment packet send a different message than those that hand new hires a carrier brochure on day one with no further guidance.
Step 1: Start 90 days before your plan renewal date. For January 1 plan years, begin by October 1. Conduct an annual plan review with your broker. Assess network adequacy for your staff's typical providers (confirm Memorial Healthcare and Broward Health networks), benchmark your premiums against comparable South Broward employers, and review any utilization issues from the prior year.
Step 2: Perform the ACA FTE calculation. Sum all part-time employee hours per month (capped at 120 per employee), divide by 120, and add full-time employees. Average the result across 12 months. For a Davie PT clinic near 40 FTEs that uses NSU clinical interns or per-diem therapists, include those hours — student clinical rotations done for academic credit typically do not create employee status, but paid per-diem work does.
Step 3: Establish or confirm your Section 125 plan document. A written cafeteria plan must be in place before the plan year begins. It must name the plan, identify eligible employees, describe benefit options, and define the election period. A Section 125 plan can include health insurance, dental, vision, FSA contributions, and dependent care FSAs. Review the document annually with your benefits advisor to confirm it reflects your current offerings.
Step 4: Distribute required federal notices. Provide the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) for each plan offered at enrollment. Also distribute the annual CHIP/Medicaid Marketplace Notice, Women's Health and Cancer Rights Act Notice, and HIPAA Special Enrollment Rights Notice. New hires must receive the ACA marketplace notice within 14 days of hire.
Step 5: Communicate benefit options in plain language. Davie PT clinic staff include both highly educated clinicians and administrative or billing staff with varying familiarity with insurance terminology. Use a side-by-side plan comparison chart with deductibles, out-of-pocket maximums, and monthly premium costs. Hold two enrollment sessions — morning and afternoon — to accommodate different shift schedules.
Step 6: Collect signed elections and waivers. Require a signed form from every eligible employee — enrollment or waiver. Store records for at least three years. Document the reason for any waiver (spouse's employer coverage, Medicaid eligibility, etc.) to support your records in the event of an ACA inquiry.
Florida's at-will employment doctrine means benefit obligations are contractual rather than statutory for most private employers. Review your employee handbook each year before open enrollment to confirm benefit language reflects your actual offerings. The 2026 Florida minimum wage of $14.00 per hour affects ACA affordability calculations — the employee-only premium cannot exceed approximately $219/month ($2,625/year) for employees earning $14.00/hr to remain within the 9.02% affordability threshold.
Workers' compensation coverage is required at four or more employees. Florida imposes no state income tax, simplifying payroll administration and eliminating the state withholding compliance layer that PT clinic owners with multi-state operations must manage in other states.
Our licensed advisors help physical therapy clinics in Davie structure group health plans, QSEHRA arrangements, and Section 125 cafeteria plans for South Florida healthcare employers.