Health Insurance Consumer Information

Two recent stories in the New York Times featured the healthinsuranceinfo.net website and its free consumer guides. Whether you are self-employed or facing retirement, these articles can provide some advice and perspective on your situation and stories of others in your situation.

Before Medicare, Sticker Shock and Rejection by Fred Brock, April 21, 2008. Pointing out that only a third of employers now offer retiree health benefits, the article discusses some of the technical aspects of getting health insurance if you retire before you are eligible for Medicare and can’t afford COBRA rates for your employer’s health insurance, covering topics like guaranteed issue, premiums and deductibles, some of the ins and outs of COBRA and HIPAA, and high-risk pools.

The article states: “If you have no pre-existing medical conditions (however that is defined by your prospective insurance company), buying individual insurance should not be hard in a state without guaranteed-issue laws.” healthinsuranceinfo.net provides current information on state insurance rules.”

Finding Health Insurance If You Are Self-Employed by Marci Alboher, March 27, 2008. “These [state-by-state consumer guide] primers are comprehensive and frequently updated, and they are a great place to start, especially if you have been wondering about the meaning of jargon that peppers insurance providers’ descriptions of their offerings,” according to Alboher and one of her subjects, Jennifer Jaff.

Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute has updated its Consumer Guide to Getting and Keeping Health Insurance in Arizona as of March 2008.

The guide contains important consumer information regarding state-based protections and health insurance policy options, including HealthCare Group of Arizona, KidsCare, and the Well Woman HealthCheck Program.

Coverage rights and limitations for COBRA, Medicaid and the Federal Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) are also outlined.

Arizona, like other states, offers its own protections for individuals who are buying private individual health insurance, and these protections (and the limitations on them) are well-explained in this guide.

Get your free copy now, in downloadable PDF format, or skim the guide online: healthinsuranceinfo.net/getinsured/arizona

Mila Kofman, Supervisor of the Maine Bureau of Insurance and Georgetown University Professor, weighs in on one young professional’s question about choosing a health insurance plan.

He says: “my parents are all over me to get insurance (I make $47,000 a year) so I told them I’d look into it. What should I look for?”

See Kofman’s response at Qvisory.

This website was featured in a recent New York Times Business story.

“Jennifer Jaff, a reader who happens to be an expert on health insurance issues, shared a valuable tool, healthinsuranceinfo.net. The site, maintained by the Georgetown Health Policy Institute, shows a map of the country and after clicking on a state, a document is downloaded that covers everything from what kinds of programs are available to small-business owners to whether there is a high-risk pool available for those who have been rejected by insurance providers. These primers are comprehensive and frequently updated, and they are a great place to start, especially if you have been wondering about the meaning of jargon that peppers insurance providers’ descriptions of their offerings.”

Read the whole story, which offers many other tips and cautionary tales for those entering the insurance market alone, at the New York Times Web site: Health Insurance If You Are Self-Employed by Marci Alboher, March 27, 2008.