Vincent K Blair Insurance Blog

If you don't have time to plow through all 2074 pages of the new health care law, here is a link to a summary and time-line of its major components.  The link will open up a new window to the website for the Kaiser Family Foundation, a non-profit organization and "a non-partisan source of facts, information, and analysis for policymakers, the media, the health care community, and the public." Even with this summary, which is pretty good, there are a lot of details still to be worked out that will have an affect on health insurance, so check this blog often for updates...

Folks, the confusion over the new healthcare law is increasing... for good reason:  it's an extremely complex law with phased-in elements stretching roughly from this September to 2014. Click on this article for a good summary of reaction on the "street":
"New Health Care Law Spawns Mass Confusion"

If you're an individual Anthem Blue Cross customer, this is a good time to review your options because your rates will almost certainly rise between 17%- 30% in 2010 -- starting Jan. 1 for some of my clients.

Why the rate increase? Most people blame the insurance company but the fact remains that the biggest reason is rising medical costs --- not the greed of the insurance industry, whose profit margins average 3.3 %, according to one study. That's a rate well behind many other industries-- including hospitals.

There is something you can do: first, call an insurance broker who knows the ins-and-outs of Anthem Blue Cross.  For example, one man received a rate increase notice which raised his monthly premium to $1250. When he gave his current broker a call, she was able to write a plan that lowered that premium to $850.  When he called me, I was able to lower it even further, with 100% coverage after his deductible was met.

Don't rely on the information you get by calling Anthem directly; while they do their best, the people answering the phone may simply try to adjust your CURRENT policy; they may not tell you about another plan that may be better for you.   If you don't have an agent, or if your agent hasn't kept up with you, I invite you to call me to discuss Anthem's full product line. It could save you money and may even maximize the protection of your coverage.

After all, I don't want to see you get burned by rising health insurance rates in the New Year, especially if you can avoid it.

This is a very honest story about the trade-offs that are inherent in the Senate's version of healthcare reform:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34352187/ns/health-health_care/

They're throwing around a lot of numbers in Washington about the cost of healthcare reform...for a clear-eyed view of what reform would really cost down the road, read this column by David Broder of the Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/20/AR2009112002618.html 

You hear it a lot these days – from the halls of Congress to  kitchen tables all across  Missouri and Illinois:  “Where can the average person get affordable health insurance?”  I hear it every day  in my office and I always ask my clients what they mean when they say that. 

Do they mean affordable premiums on health insurance?  Affordable deductibles?  Affordable  co-pays? “Why, yes,” most people say, “all three!”  Then I ask them, “ What if you bought a policy with affordable premiums, affordable deductibles and affordable co-pays, and you get sick, and the policy doesn't cover what you have?  How affordable is that same policy now?

The answer is simple: Not very affordable!  Because now you would be liable for the full cost of your very unaffordable treatment!  Like so many other things in life, you get what you pay for. 

Having said that, there ARE truly affordable health insurance policies out there – for a variety of budgets.  Here's how to find them:

• DO work with a health insurance broker who is knowledgeable about a wide variety of policies and who asks the right questions about your current health care needs.  There is no extra charge for using a broker, so take advantage of their expertise;
• DON'T simply fill out a form on the internet that promises to give you an “instant Quote”. Quotes that are provided online are averages only and your quote could differ radically when you actually apply with these companies;
• DO ask lots of questions about WHAT IS and WHAT ISN'T COVERED  when you buy a policy. This information - factored in with premium and out-of-pocket costs - is what  determines  true affordability.

 So, yes, there are affordable health insurance policies out there. And these days, you really can't afford to be without one.