Health Insurance News and Comments
Illinois Health Insurance - Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois
An important topic for residents of Illinois is that of health insurance. There are 12 million residents of the state and growing. Long-time inhabitants of Illinois understand that living in this state is one of the best places to be when you are seeking out insurance to protect the health of yourself and your family. This is especially true if you qualify for low income insurance rates. It is inconsequential what kind of Illinois health insurance you are seeking. You can find exactly the right coverage for you and your family at a cost you can manage. Often the key is to find the right company.
There are a number of plans you can choose from. Everything from short-term to long-term, catastrophic coverage for those at high risk or more basic plans for generally healthy people are offered in Illinois. Plus, you can seek individual, family or group plans at very reasonable rates. No matter your position, whether you are a small business owner looking for a plan to give your workers, the head of the household seeking proper coverage for your family, or a single person ensuring your personal coverage, Illinois health insurance comes in all shapes and sizes. If you feel overwhelmed with your choices, there are things you can do as a resident of Illinois to make finding the perfect coverage easier than ever.
Professional insurance agencies are set up in Illinois to help you choose the best plan. Blue Cross Blue Shield Illinois, or BCBS, is a prime selection that many residents of the state enjoy coverage from. Many people are able to find the absolute best plan for themselves, their families or their employees without making any compromises. The ability that BCBS has to give their customers the choice of tailoring an Illinois health insurance plan to their specific needs is a great draw to obtaining coverage from this company.
While BCBS is a nationwide company that offers coverage to people in many states across the country, the coverage you can receive in Illinois from this company is second to none. The headquarters is located in Chicago, hitting close to home for many Illinois residents. Whether you are a generally healthy person or suffer from a preexisting condition, you will not be victimized because of your specific situation. Hundreds of thousands of residents already enjoy their Illinois health insurance from BCBS, and you can as well.
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Health Insurance, & Health Insurance In Illinois, To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Augmenting Your Illinois Medicare With an AARP Plan
It makes sense that the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) would endorse a Medicare Supplemental insurance company to augment your Medicare Plan. It also makes sense that if you are enrolled in Illinois Medicare that you’d turn to AARP for a decent recommendation for the right supplementary policy to do just that and cross the gap. So, if you are like most, you probably at least want to get a quote from AARP’s recommended and endorsed Medicare Supplement insurance company.
Well, the name of the company, the one they have endorsed is United Health Care and so, perhaps you should find an agent which handles United Health Care supplemental policies to help you strategize in choosing a supplemental plan and assisting you in shopping around for the best quote, and thus, find you a policy that fits your budget, needs, and makes sense for your individual health issues. You are going to need a supplemental plan to augment your Illinois Medicare, a policy from a company that has a high satisfaction rate amongst those in your age bracket and similar needs.
Apparently, AARP has worked quite hard to do much of the leg work and research for you. Still, you are also going to want to check out the other strong players offering coverage in Supplemental Medicare and compare them against AARP’s endorsement. United Health Care is a top rated health care insurance company, even without AARP’s recommendation, but so are a good many others, some of which might actually fit your individual needs better.
So, just because the American Association of Retired Persons, which you are probably a member of, wants you to think of United Health Care when you think Illinois Medicare, does not mean you have too. Prudence is important when picking policies.
Tell you what, why don’t you schedule a time to go over all this, perhaps on the phone, and let me do the research for you, and round up the best quotes from the best companies. Then let’s compare them together side-by-side, and see how they stack up? After all, stress is one of the early warning signs of future challenges with your health, so there is absolutely no sense in getting all worked up over nothing trying to figure all the Illinois Medicare Supplemental Insurance choices by yourself.
Think about your reward - No More Stress - No More Worries - and Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Medicare & Illinois Medicare Supplemental Insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.focusinsgroup.com.
Illinois Family Health Insurance – How To Pick The Best Co-Pay Plan For Your Family
There are not a lot of families in the United States today that wouldn’t be willing to switch their Illinois family health insurance to a different carrier if they could lower their premiums and keep the same benefit level. Believe it or not, even in the marketplace today it’s worth looking in to. As long as you go about it correctly and get good help it shouldn’t be a problem at all.
So how do you go about picking the best doctor office co-pay plan for your family? You need to take a close look at the benefit outlines of each carrier that you’re interested in. One of the best ways, I think, to do this would be to use an online quoting engine and take advantage of the help of a good broker.
One of the most important things to compare is the deductible. Not just the amount, which is important, but also how many deductibles you have to meet per family. With some carriers you only have to meet two deductibles per family with other carriers you would have to meet three.
Another thing to keep an eye on is how many different coinsurance levels does your family have to meet? Again with some carriers it’s only two and with other carriers it could be three. Another way to look at this is to compare the family max out-of-pocket.
Doctor office co-pays can vary as well, they range anywhere from $20 up to $40 per doctor office visit. Some carriers even charged double that for specialist co-pays.
With the price of prescription drugs today it’s very important to take a close look at what your prescription drug coverage would be upfront and what your prescription co-pays would be. Prescription drug co-pays can vary quite a bit between carriers. For the most part there are four tiers to prescription drugs.
Tier 1 - Generic
Tier 2 - Formulary or Preferred Name Brand Drugs
Tier 3 - Non Formulary or Name Brand Drugs
Tier 4 - Specialty drugs
Sometimes specialty drugs have annual limitations as well, which should be taken into consideration.
Take a close look at what kind of annual wellness benefit is offered. Most carriers have started to limit this annual routine benefit to $300-$1000. State-mandated benefits typically do not count towards the annual benefit amount allowed.
So when you take a close look at these areas when choosing your Illinois family health insurance plan that’ll make your decision making process a lot easier.
Think about your reward -No More Stress-No More Worries-And Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois family health insurance, & Illinois Medicare. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Illinois Medicare – How to Qualify
Thanks to the impending economic crises, people of all ages and economic backgrounds are taking a closer look at how they spend their money and whether or not they will be able to continue to provide for their families in the way to which they have become accustomed. While for some people this might mean that they have to cut back on how much they drive their cars, or whether or not they go out to eat on the weekends, for others there are much more serious issues to be considered. Many people have lost their jobs or found out that they will no longer be able to afford their health insurance premiums. For seniors, this means that they need to take a more serious look at Illinois Medicare.
If you are nearing the age when you might consider retirement, or you are still working but are concerned about being able to afford health care once you reach retirement age, you should know that Illinois Medicare was created by the federal government as a way to provide consistent health care to those individuals who have spent the better parts of their lives working and caring for their families. If you have worked for companies that withdrew social security taxes from your pay check on a regular basis, you should know that you have been paying to fund this service for those other than yourself.
Many people assume that because they have contributed to social security benefits for others, they are also entitled to Illinois Medicare once they have retired. Although this makes sense, it’s not exactly how the service works. Before you retire, you will have to determine whether or not you are eligible for Medicare, and this decision will be made by the Social Security Administration.
While there are some medical conditions that will disqualify you for Illinois Medicare, the most common reasons that people are not approved are that they are not of the appropriate age, they are not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, you did not work the qualifying amount of time, or you were married to someone who did not work the qualifying amount of time. It is best to determine whether or not you are approaching all of the correct qualifications before you reach retirement age. Whether or not you qualify, you may still be able to purchase the Medicare insurance for yourself.
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Medicare, & Illinois health insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Health Insurance in Illinois – Knowing When A Group or Individual Policy Is Your Best Option
If you’ve paid any attention to the news lately, you already know that the issue of health care is one of the most pressing and important ones being considered by the federal government right now. For the families that have to worry about taking care of the health of their children, health insurance really isn’t an option, or something that they have time to debate about. Families access to health insurance in Illinois that won’t empty out their bank accounts with high premiums and unreasonable deductibles. If you are shopping for more affordable health insurance for the first time in years, you should know that there are differences between plans offered.
First of all, most people have access to health insurance in Illinois through their full time employer. The companies agree to pay part of the premiums, or the monthly payments, for having the insurance, and in most cases the employees pay a percentage of the premiums out of their salary. Depending on what type of insurance company the employer has chosen to work with, you might also be responsible for paying deductibles that are due at the time that you are seen by your doctor.
The only problem with this arrangement is that often the employees have no say in the type of coverage or plan that is chosen. They are required to contribute toward the premiums regardless of whether or not they think they are fair, because otherwise they would be left without insurance. You should know that if you are not happy with the health insurance in Illinois that your company has chosen for you, you do have the option of not participating, and finding your own insurance provider. There are several advantages to choosing to do this, in the event that you don’t like or trust the company that your employer is working with.
One of the best advantages of striking out on your own to find health insurance in Illinois is that you will not have to worry about your coverage changing in the event that your employer decides to change companies, or if you change jobs to a new company. Having a plan that stays with you can only happen on an individual policy.
Think about your reward - No More Worries, No More Stress, and Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Health Insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Health insurance in Illinois – Honesty is The Best Policy
Health Insurance in Illinois is easy to find and easy to get a quote. I have come across a lot of people that are looking to get a competitive quote and they are just not quite sure what to put on the application. You’re probably thinking, what does the health insurance carrier need to know? Less face it, it is not easy to remember everything, right? When did that condition start, what was the diagnosis? One solution would be to ask your physician for a copy of your medical records. That way you would have a copy at home under lock and key that you can reference when filling out an application. If you’re really lucky you’ll have a doctor’s handwriting you can read.
You might even find out you have a condition that you didn’t know about. How can you be expected to fill out a new application for health insurance in Illinois without this knowledge? You can’t, it’s impossible, not correctly at least. When filling out a health insurance application you need to be absolutely 100% honest. I can promise you one thing, they will find out about it anyway. They can pull your medical records from the doctors and if there is a serious discrepancy to your application they can rescind you policy.
Believe me you don’t want this to happen. They can also pull up a prescription drug MIB database that everyone is on in America and find out what prescription drugs you have taken in the past. That is going to give them a good idea of the conditions you had or still currently have. There is no reason to hide this, be honest and disclose it on the application; honesty is always the best policy. If you don’t have a copy of your medical records at home, and most people don’t, and you’re not exactly sure when your condition started or stopped simply say so on the application. If the carrier needs specific dates believe me they will go ahead and pull your medical records to be sure.
It is the customer’s responsibility to go over the application and make sure that everything is correct when your application is delivered. So don’t put it on the shelf to collect dust. Please open it and make sure everything is correct. You might have developed a condition between the time you filled out the application and when it was delivered to you. Be sure to let the insurance carrier and the agent know about the change in health status. It could possibly change things and it’s better to know up front and deal with it than to have your policy canceled at a later time possibly.
Once you’ve filled out an application that is 100% correct. Keep a copy of it at home for your records. If you ever want to shop the market place for a competitive quote, you can use your old application as a starting point. This way you only need to transfer in the information over to the new application, fill in the missing health history and submit the application to the carrier. The most important thing you can do is to find a good agent you can trust and that will help you through this process so it is done right.
Think about your reward - No More Worries, No More Stress, and Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Health Insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Health Insurance in Illinois – Choosing the most Cost-Effective Plan
Health insurance in Illinois can be a confusing field to navigate, with so many different providers, especially in the large cities. In addition, there are many different types of insurance plans that may be better tailored to some individuals and others to families. For many people, particularly in this time of recession, is to find the highest quality of health care that also fits their budgets. To this end, there are professional organizations that can help hook up families with the quality health care that is the most cost-effective.
One of the most economical options when it comes to health insurance in Illinois for many people is health management organizations, or HMO’s. These have the premiums and deductibles usually paid for by a person’s employer, making the out-of-pocket costs extremely low. Usually a nominal fee is paid at each doctor’s visit or to fill a prescription, anywhere from 5-30 dollars. This is idea for families in particular who may have small children that will need regular, routine doctor’s visits. However, by contrast for elderly people who may need many specialty visits, this can be a bad idea because they would have to pay extra for each specialty visit.
Preferred provider organizations, or PPO’s, offer a little more variety and flexibility when it comes to health insurance in Illinois. With this option, you choose the primary care provider, who you visit regularly, but still have the freedom to go outside of network if desired. You may have to pay the initial out of network fee, but have the option of getting reimbursed from the health insurance organization after the fact. This does take a great deal of paperwork at times, which is one drawback, but it may be worth it for both the low cost and flexibility.
These are only two of the many options when it comes to health insurance in Illinois. There are many other choices that are available to interested parties. Everyone’s situation is a little different, so it may be wise to examine which options can be individualized to your specific needs. This is best achieved with the assistance of a professional insurance agent, who knows the ins and outs of the complicated health care system of Illinois. With years of experience, they can generally figure out what the most cost-effective plan is in any situation that may arise. If interested in this most important of decisions that a person can make, please sit down with a professional advisor.
Think about your reward - No More Worries, No More Stress, and Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Health Insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Illinois Health Insurance - Why Disclose Health Conditions?
When customers have problems with the insurance carriers it is usually the result of not disclosing health conditions when filling out the application. This could cause serious issues in being able to keep your policy in place.
Illinois health insurance carriers can be very strict when it comes to not putting all your health conditions on the application. The most important thing about filling out your application is to fill it out accurately and thoroughly, disclosing all past and current health conditions. Ramifications of not disclosing health conditions in this state will depend upon the condition in all honesty.
Remembering all your health conditions can be a bit tedious at times, especially if you have several of them, but it is well worth the time and effort to do so correctly. If you can’t remember or are unsure of what you’ve had and when it started, take the time to contact your doctor’s office and get the specifics. You might as well disclose it anyway, because I can promise you, the health insurance carrier will find out about it anyway. Failing to do so on your application for health insurance in Illinois can have some serious consequences.
1. The biggest reasons you should is that in Illinois if you fail to do so your policy can be rescinded. This means that your policy has just been canceled and you now have no health insurance.
2. In Illinois carriers can place riders or exclusions on health conditions. This means the carrier would not cover that condition for whatever time frame they deem necessary. This could be anywhere from 1 year to indefinite.
3. Or maybe they would just charge you a higher premium. Minor health conditions can be covered but the insurance carrier can rate up the premium to cover their additional risk. This rate up could be substantial; it could double your premium.
It doesn’t make a lot of sense not to disclose health information up front so you know where you stand. What if you had a severe health condition costing several hundred thousand dollars and the carrier rescinds your policy. What good did that do? I recommend being 100% honest when filling out the application. At least then if the carrier were to decline to offer health coverage you could seek out other alternatives.
Getting a policy for health insurance in Illinois doesn’t have to be a risky proposition if you take the time and do it correctly. Try not to rush through the process. Get together with an agent that specializes in health insurance and have them help. That is exactly what they are there to do, take advantage of it.
Think about it this way - Your reward is - No More Worries, No More Stress, and Mission Accomplished!
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group, get expert help from an agent specializing in Illinois Health Insurance. To learn more visit his site at www.Focusinsgroup.com
Chicago Health Insurance – Be Prepared
No one likes to think about what they would do if someone in their family was seriously injured or if they suddenly were diagnosed with a serious illness. However, medical bills for things like that have been known to completely wreck a family’s finances and cause a lot of tension for the ones that have to deal with it. When was the last time that you examined your Chicago Health Insurance to make sure that you and your loved ones were completely covered in case an emergency health situation arose? If it’s been some time since you checked your coverage, it’s a good idea to make sure that you are prepared no matter what.
If you’ve always had trouble comparing Chicago health insurance, you should know that you’re not alone. There are many people that would be embarrassed to admit that they probably only know what their co-pays and deductibles are. But what about your policy’s definition of emergency care; are you sure that a sever fever in the middle of the night would be covered if you had nowhere to go but the emergency room? Too many people have gone through life thinking that their insurance would take care of everything, but then when they go to use it, they are very surprised.
You have to decide which features of Chicago health insurance are the most important for you and your family. Perhaps your budget demands that you find a policy that allows you to pay as little for routine care as possible. This means that you will need to find an insurance company that will allow you to pay more in up front premiums and less whenever you actually have to file a claim. This is an ideal plan to use especially if your employer is the one providing the insurance.
Another thing that you should keep in mind about Chicago health insurance is whether or not you are open to the possibility of moving your care to a new doctor. Although many people are comfortable with the doctors they’ve been seeing all their lives, a switch to a more affordable health insurance company might require that you only see doctors within their predetermined network of physicians. Whether or not this will be possible for you will depend on how much of a relationship you have built up with your primary doctor.
Randy Gillespie is the owner of Focus Insurance Group; to get expert help from an agent specializing in Chicago Health Insurance, Illinois Medicare Supplement, Illinois Group Health Insurance, Illinois Health Insurance, visit his site at www.FocusInsGroup.com
How to better watch bottom line on healthcare costs
By KIMBERLY LANKFORD Kiplinger Personal Finance
Twyla and Robert House have excellent health-insurance coverage. But after Robert was hospitalized twice within eight months, they ended up owing more than $6,500 in out-of-pocket medical expenses. The Little River, S.C., couple dutifully paid a portion of the balance each month until they whittled it to about $2,000. At that point, Robert offered to pay off his bill in a lump sum if the hospitals would give him a discount.
“We had an extra $1,300 in savings,” says Twyla. “Robert told them, ‘This is how much I have, and if you want your money, or at least a big chunk of it, you’ll cut me a deal.”’ The gambit worked. The hospitals agreed to deduct more than $650.
Your out-of-pocket share of a hospital bill can be a budget buster, and now health insurers are passing along more of the costs. For example, many are raising deductibles, and some are switching from co-payments (such as $20 per doctor’s visit or per prescription) to a co-insurance system that makes policyholders liable for a percentage of the total bill. Over the past five years, 70 percent of Cigna insurance policies have shifted from co-payments to co-insurance.
By comparison-shopping and negotiating the best price — the same tactics you would use for any other major purchase — you can trim your bills. “You have to wonder why some people don’t give the same time, effort and attention to their health-care costs as they do to other major financial decisions,” says Tom Bridenstine, the managed-care ombudsman with the Virginia Bureau of Insurance, who helps consumers with health-insurance issues.
Evaluating healthcare services based on price doesn’t mean you’ll sacrifice quality. And you’ll find plenty of help from employers and insurers, who also benefit from lower costs. The following tactics will help you save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on your medical expenses.
Ways to save:
1 Ask for a price break. Each hospital has its own rules about negotiating bills, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. The same goes for doctors and other health providers.
2 Pick the appropriate facility. Where you go to receive care can make a huge difference in your costs. Emergency-room visits tend to cost $300 to $1,000, compared with $150 at an urgent-care center, $65 to $75 at a doctor’s office, and $35 to $45 at a convenience-care clinic. With a 20 percent co-insurance charge, that trip to the emergency room could cost you $200 vs. just $7 for a visit to a convenience-care clinic. For nonemergencies, it pays to call your insurer’s 24-hour advice hotline for guidance on where to go for care. Make sure the facility and provider are in your health plan’s network.
3 Use online tools to compare costs. Insurers are making it easier to compare hospitals and providers based on quality and cost. And pricier doesn’t always mean better.
“Hospitals with low complication rates and high survival rates tend to have lower costs,” says Jeffrey Kang, Cigna’s chief medical officer. Companies such as Cigna and Aetna have integrated Web tools that let customers search by ailment (such as diabetes or wrist pain), then find appropriate local doctors, including an assessment of their fees and quality of service.
4 Compare prices for tests at hospitals as well as free-standing imaging centers, which tend to charge a lot less.
“One MRI facility may charge $500 for a scan, and a block away, another charges $1,500 for the same service,” says Kang. “But the quality of care is pretty much the same.” And it’s easy to calculate the cost of routine care. For example, MinuteClinic, located in CVS Pharmacy stores, charges $69 for treating strep throat and $59 for a child’s summer-camp physical (see the rate list for common treatments at www.minuteclinic.com).
5 Save on prescription drugs. You can save big money by switching to generic drugs, which tend to cost 30 percent to 60 percent less than brand-name equivalents, according to UnitedHealthcare. Or you may be able to switch to a “therapeutic alternative,” a similar drug that costs less.
Most insurers now have Web tools showing the cost of all drugs — brand names and generics — that provide similar results, including the total price, as well as the amount you’ll pay under your health plan.
If your insurer’s site doesn’t have those tools, visit DestinationRx’s Web site ( www.drx.com) and use the Medicine Cabinet feature to compare prices for similar drugs and specific pharmacies in your area, as well as online and mail-order pharmacies that tend to be cheaper.
6 Take advantage of free services. Insurers save money when you stay healthy, and many provide free preventive care, such as annual mammograms and Pap tests for women in certain age groups, plus screenings for colorectal and prostate cancer.
7 Make the most of discounts. Many insurers offer discounts on services to promote healthy lifestyles, such as gym memberships, smoking-cessation and weight-loss programs, chiropractic service and acupuncture.
8 Sign up for employer incentives. To save money on medical costs, employers may offer premium discounts, contributions to health savings accounts and cash incentives to employees who sign up for a wellness program or health assessment. Some also offer perks to people with, say, asthma, lower-back pain or diabetes for enrolling in a disease-management program, says Steve Kaczmarek, an actuary with Milliman, a consulting firm in healthcare and employee benefits.
9 Review your bill. Bridenstine says people with high-deductible policies who pay the full amount for many healthcare services out-of-pocket (until they satisfy their deductible) are often charged the more-expensive, uninsured rate rather than the rate that the insurer negotiates with providers. Then, verify that all of your eligible out-of-pocket payments are credited to your deductible. Finally, check whether you must meet separate deductibles for in-network and out-of-network services.
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