Health Insurance Blog

According to Medigapadvisors.com, Humana One is a Fortune 100 company with 50 years experience in health care and is committed to offering great benefits, wellness programs, and excellent customer service.  Humana is generally known for offering Part D prescription coverage but they also offer Medicare supplement insurance plans in many states. 

Humana One, which is a division of Humana, Inc, is one of the largest publicly traded health insurance companies.  With them offering medicare supplement insurance it broadens their customer base.  You can find the plan that suits you best by reviewing many of the benefits which include basic benefits, skilled nursing coinsurance, foreign travel insurance, at-home recovery and preventative care. 

Not all plans are available in all states, but you can order a brochure to compare benefits and costs.  It’s important to understand what benefits will bring you value when looking at the differing costs of each plan.  Medicare supplement insurance can be overwhelming, but very helpful in times of need.

According to the article “Medicare and You 2009″ by Sandy Stillwell from Seattle Conservative Seniors Examiner, the government is offering an official handbook through the mail to all seniors who are interested in learning more about Medicare. 

The handbook is entitled Medicare and You 2009 and has a lot of valuable information.  The handbook covers what’s new in the Medicare arena, 2009 Medicare costs, what Medicare covers, health and prescription information with medicare supplement insurance plans, and your Medicare rights.  It also covers how to look for and what to do in the case of fraud and identity theft. 

If you have not received a Handbook you are able to contact Medicare to request one.  If you need to drop, switch or join a Medicare Advantage plan you are able to do this through December 31.  The coverage for this type of plans starts the 1st of each new year.  Medicare and medicare supplement insurance plans can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing, so having this handbook at your fingertips is a great way to stay on top of all of the information out there. 

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI) has asked the Rhode Island Health Insurance Commissioner to approve a 10.2% rate increase for its direct-pay plans (available to individuals and families who are not eligible for group health insurance plans or government sponsored programs).

Direct Pay is the only health insurance plan in Rhode Island that is guaranteed issue for those not eligible for group plans or Medicare or Medicaid.

BSBCRI offers several programs that make individual health insurance more affordable including AccessBlue Subsidy plan, The Wellness Reward Plan and the Preferred Rate System.

More information about Rhode Island health insurance

Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Supplemental Insurance is a very valuable type of coverage for those on Medicare.  According to their website, medicare does not cover all health care costs so having additional coverage can save you a lot of money.

Medicare coverage generally consists of Part A, which takes care of hospital and nursing facility care coverage, and Part B, which covers physician costs and other health care expenses.  Even with both of these coverages senior have to pay for other costs out of their own pocket.  Some of these include deductibles, copays, and coinsurance.  If someone doesn’t have Medicare supplement insurance, costs can be as high as $53,000 according to BCBS.  That is often beyond affordable for many seniors living off of social security.

Private insurance companies, such as BCBS medicare supplements, offer extra protection to fill in the gaps for medical expenses.  With health care reform still up for debate it’s hard to tell what will happen to seniors who are currently covered by Medicare and supplemental insurance.  It’s extra important that seniors have affordable health care, because not only do they need it more, but many are on fixed incomes, so a large increase in costs could be devastating.

Finding health insurance in Florida does not have to be a difficult challenge.  According to the article “Florida Health Insurance Buyers Guide” from TransWorldNews, there are certain Florida health insurance regulations that should be understood when shopping around.

Florida health insurance, like most states, are permitted to deny an application for pre-existing conditions.  This can potentially be avoided by applying for health insurance as a member of a group plan.  There are often restrictions with this option to watch out for though.  The group generally must have had coverage for 12 mos previously with no lapse. 

According to the article, Maryland, Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, and New Jersey are the only states who do not allow an application to be turned down because of pre-existing conditions.  Florida currently underwrites policies based on previous medical history.  In Florida you are able to purchase a conversion policy if you happen to lose coverage if you had 3 months of coverage through a group before it was lost.  And there is a limit on the cost.  It cannot be more than 200% of the price of a standard rate for an individual health insurance policy. 

The AARP recently announced they are supporting the idea of a government run health care system according to the article “Why Has the AARP Sold Out Its Members on Healthcare” by Al Ritter for the Baltimore Conservative Examiner.  This is interesting because the AARP is a self declared non-partisan group.

In 2008 AARP made about $653 million in royalties from insurance companies that sold products referred by AARP.  This is huge considering membership fees only brought in about $249 million that same year.  Seniors have two main choices for Medicare supplement insurance plans, Medicare Advantage and Medigap.  Medigap supplemental insuranceis endorsed by the AARP and they receive royalties from the company.  With Medicare Advantage health plans at risk with the new health care proposal, the hope is that more people will purchase Medigap and therefore AARP will make more money.

Section 1161 of the House bill cuts payments to the government run Medicare Advantage health plan which is used by about 20% of senior citizens.  It may cause them to lose some of their benefits such as health, vision and dental coverage and this is why they may be forced to purchase AARP Medicare Supplements.

According to the article “Two Medicare Programs Are Leaving Amarillo” found on connectamarillo.com, Secure Horizons and Physicians Health Choice are leaving the city. 

Members who were part of these plans and wish to remain on Medicare still have options.  The Area Agency on Aging is offering help to these citizens.  They are offering advice and guidance free of charge to those who need help.  Lisa Hancock is a volunteer for the Agency and told Pronews 7 that they try to help find a plan that will cover prescription costs because Medicare often does not. 

Open enrollement for prescription drug and health plans through Medicare goes through the end of December.  If you need assistance you should contact your local Area Agency on Aging.

According to the article “Overhaul of Health Care Bad for Seniors” by John Fanning on summitdaily.com, many senior citizens are losing their health insurance coverage in 2010 as many insurers have reduced medicare supplement plans or have increased premiums drastically. 

Many seniors are currently struggling to get by and paying for health insurance is just another worry on their plate.  If the current health care bill passes in Congress, advantage plans may be dismantled and seniors will need to find a prescription drug plan for MedicareD.  This can add an additional $25-$50 to the cost of their health care.  With many senior citizens living off of only social security this can be disastrous, especially since there is no SS increase for 2010. 

Over 12 million Medicare benficiaries are enrolled in Medicare Advantage Plans which represents 23% of the total Medicare population.  Many use Medicare supplement insurance as well.  Medicare pays about 11% more for a beneficiary to have a Medicare Advantage plan than for original Medicare on average. 

In the recent US News and World Report annual health plan rankings report, two health plans offered by Highmark ranked as being among the best health plans in the nation.

• SecurityBlue, HighMark’s Medicare Advantage HMO ranked #32 among Medicare Health Plans
• Among Commercial HMOs, Keystone Blue (offered by Highmark subsidiary Keystone Health Plan West) ranked 47th

Both of the above health plans were rated as excellent.

More information about:  Pennsylvania Health Insurance, Medicare Advantage Plans, HighMark BlueShield

According to the article “Geisinger Study Aims to Find Fun, Effective Way to Combat Pediatric Obesity” found of their website, childhood obesity in the US is on the rise.  With this comes a significant raise in the risk of type 2 diabetes.  This has motivated Geisinger Health Plan to do something about it.

Researchers at Geisinger Health System’s Henry Hood Center for Health Research and University of PA received a grant by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to look for creative ways to prevent as well as treat children ages 4-8 who are in the 85th percentile for weight or who have a higher BMI. 

Geisinger Health Insurance is taking on this initiative partly because The American Academy of Pediatrics report the prevalence of kids who are obese has doubled over the last 20 years.  According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 31.9% of children and teens are overweight, and 16.3% are considered obese.  These statistics are staggering and shows that something must be done to curb these numbers.  Geisinger is heading in the right direction to take action and find ways to decrease obesity in this country.