Health Insurance Blog

For many American families, COBRA coverage is still too expensive even with the current COBRA subsidy which is temporarily in place.  The COBRA subsidy program pays 65% of the monthly premiums for up to 15 months, but still can require a substantial monthly expense, as the average family of four still pays on average $389 per month even with the subsidy.

A recent report by eHealthinsurance.com found that in twenty states, families could save $600 per year ($50/mo) by purchasing a family health insurance plan as oppose to opting for the COBRA coverage.  Even with the subsidy!

The twenty states that were found to offer the affordable health insurance identified in the report include:  Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Intermountain Healthcare (IHC) of Utah could be a good model for health insurance reform in the US.   They are admired far and wide for delivering low-cost, high-quality health care.  IHC’s Selecthealth division is the top health insurance compnay in Utah with over 36% marketshare.  Other leanding health insurance companies in Utah include:  Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield of Utah (16% marketshare), and Altius Health Plans (15%).

Intermountain’s relatively unique healthcare delivery system involves provising health insurance coverage while owning the hospitals and employing the doctors, which gives them greater control over costs.

More information about Utah health insurance.

The state of Utah has launched a “health insurance exchange”.  Through a state run website,  participating small businesses in Utah will be able to offer employees a health care stipend, which workers can in turn use to shop on the site and select an individual health insurance plan that best fits their needs.

Utah has partnered with eHealthinsurance.com to provide the comparison shopping engine, which includes five health insurance carriers collectively offering 72 different Utah health insurance plans.

Through the health insurance plans participating on the eHealthinsurance platform, Utah health insurance rates are as low as $35/mo for an individual or $135 for a family, according to a Salt Lake Tribune article.

According to J.D. Power and Associates’ 2009 Health Plan Ratings, BlueCross BlueShield of Arizona was the top rated private health plan in the Arizona/Utah region.  The ratings are based on

1. Health coverage and benefits
2. Provider choice
3. Health information and communication
4. Health insurance claims processing
5. Statements
6. Customer service, and
   
7. Approval processes

SelectHealth also faired very well in the JD Power survey for this region.

More information about Arizona health insurance & Utah health insurance

Autism affects thousands of American families every day. In most cases, families must go into debt to pay for the comprehensive therapy they feel their children need; behavioral therapy is not covered by most insurance. Utah state senator Howard Stephenson and state representative Roger Barrus (both R) plan to change all that. In January, they will introduce a bill in the state legislature that would mandate providers of Utah health insurance to cover treatment for autism.

In the Salt Lake Tribune, Heather May outlined the provisions of this bill:

• The bill will only cover treatment for autistic children under 5 years of age, because that’s when therapy is said to have the greatest impact.
• The type of treatment covered by the bill is most likely to be ABA therapy (applied behavior analysis), which consists of up to 40 hours a week of one-on-one therapy that helps autistic children learn to communicate and teaches them appropriate social skills. ABA is widely considered to be effective, but it has been criticized by some for being an unproven method.
• Companies that are self-insured, as well as the federal government, will be excluded from the health care coverage mandate.
• The insurance will have a $30,000 annual cap, as well as a lifetime cap.
• The bill will also require families to contribute financially.

Select Health, a non profit health insurer serving Utah and Idaho, has launched a premium assistance program that will supplement the existing SelectHealth Kids Plan, and reduce monthly premiums by 40-60% for qualifying residents.

Utah’s children’s health insurance program (CHIP) currently provides a low cost health insurance plan to families in need who have uninsured children, however many families fall through the cracks of these state sponsored health insurance plans across the country because they make too much money to qualify for Medicaid and other Government funded programs.

Select Health’s premium assistance program reduces the avg monthly premiums to $25-$50 a month and qualification is based on household income combined with family size.  Approval into the program qualifies the family for 12 months of assistance, after the 12 months is up, families must apply for acceptance again.

For more information interested parties can call toll free 1-800-442-3125.

Utah health insurers announced a new health insurance plan, called NetCare, for Utah residents who are between jobs.  NetCare is designed to be a more affordable health insurance option than COBRA coverage.

Cost savings from the COBRA alternative would be derived from NetCare not being required to include all the health benefits that are currently required by other Utah health insurance plans.

NetCare would be available as an individual plan or group plan for up to 12 months for Utah residents transitioning off their employer-sponsored health plan.  After the initial 12 month period, members would have to reapply as individuals.

The focus on NetCare will be providing beneficiaries with incentives for maintaining healthy lifestyles, and utilizing preventive care.