Deciding on your 2019 Health Insurance

As we are now in the middle of the annual Open Enrollment Period for health insurance, it is time to review your 2019 health insurance options before the holidays. Start by reviewing your existing plan and carrier. How has your member experience been with your current insurer? Do you think you have the right type of plan for both your medical needs and budget?

Finding the right plan for you comes down to balancing both your budget and medical needs. If your income is below 400% of the Federal Poverty Level, speak with us to see if you are eligible for premium tax credits to help lower your health insurance premium. Our subsidized health insurance members have seen very flat premium increases compared to the state-wide weighted average premium increase of 8.7%.

If you are healthy and simply looking for the most affordable options, go with an EPO or HMO carrier to help lower your premium and review if a health savings compatible health insurance plan is right for you. Oscar’s EPO and Kaiser’s HMO Bronze plans are the most competitive on the market and both carriers offer competitively priced HSA or health savings account compatible plans. An HSA allows you to put tax-deductible money aside and use the funds to pay for your medical expenses. You can even use your HSA’s funds to pay for COBRA continuation coverage premiums, Medicare and other health plans at 65 or older, health care coverage while receiving unemployment compensation under federal or state law, or for long-term care insurance.

For someone who has recurring medical needs or routine prescriptions, you should go no lower than a silver metal plan. Bronze 60 plans do not cover prescriptions until after you first pay $500 per prescription per month. If you plan on having any major operations next year, either outpatient or inpatient (hospital), you want to enroll in a Gold or Platinum metal plan so that you have no medical or drug deductibles to meet first before the insurer starts to pay for your operation.

As always, eating healthy and keeping up with friends and family are the best medicines to keep your health in check. To keep our healthcare costs down, it is always important to get your free preventative annual wellness checkup with your primary care doctor. All health insurance plans provide 1 free annual wellness checkup & women’s wellness exam along with free preventative immunizations. By keeping your doctor up-to-date on your health, you can assess what type of healthcare needs may need to be addressed as well as what health insurance plan you should have for the coming year.

Make sure to communicate with your loved ones that short-term medical plans will no longer exist in California in 2019 due to SB-910. It is absolutely vital that you and your loved ones have some form of health insurance, at least a minimum coverage plan to cover you in case of a medical emergency. Unfortunately, medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy in the United States and we can all make sure our loved ones have at least some form of protection for the unexpected.

Please do not hesitate to contact us to go over your health insurance options. At Solid Health Insurance Services, we strive to make sure our clients are well informed on all of their available options. Our mission is to find for you affordable health insurance, life insurance, long-term care insurance and travel insurance which fits your medical needs and budget for your individual, family and business needs. Please contact us at 310-909-6135 or at info@solidhealthinsurance.com.

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