If you are like me and have no medical insurance coverage, the open enrollment for providers begins October 1st. You are like me in that on March 31, 2014 you will have medical insurance because of the federal healthcare law that mandates all Americans have health insurance. We have six months to figure out who we are going to give our money to so we avoid the government fine for not having said insurance.
I read in the Wall Street Journal about some nefarious practices of some health providers in the US that are sending current members misleading information about the ramifications of the new health care law as pertains to their current coverage. It was an interesting read, and not too surprising. I'm glad the state insurance regulators caught the providers and did something about it. The article got me thinking about my coverage, or lack thereof, and the necessity of it by the end of March next year.
The article in the WSJ mentioned Cigna Health and an online tool that assists people in finding the best health coverage plan for them -- even if it means Cigna will lose customers because a better plan happens to be with another health provider. This action made me nod my head in approval, Cigna was the first place I went looking for my health coverage. As it turns out, however, Cigna will not be available to me in California. The nice woman I spoke with on the phone at Cigna directed me to Healthcare.gov, a website that will help me find the information to get me the coverage I need.
The website set up and run by the government was easy to navigate and sent me in the right direction. We do have to wait until October 1st to see the plan and cost information. I answered some questions about myself: Age, gender, state of residence, etc., entered my zip code and was directed to the state agency responsible for signing up people living in that state. California uses "Covered California," Colorado has "Connect for Health Colorado."
Back at the Covered California website I find a very easy to navigate website that helps me figure out exactly what I am looking for, on average. I was given three options to choose from based on my demographics. All are about the same price of $150 per month, and generally offer the same services with the only differences being in the co-pay and deductible ratios. I am a healthy dude and do not expect to need lots of care so I will go for the plan with a lower monthly and higher deductible because I don't plan on using the services too often. Besides, the preventive care visits are free with my plan. I look forward to access to a medical professional one-on-one.
Some people complain about the mandate increasing fixed costs for the household. Sure, I'd rather not pay $150 a month, but the positive externalities of everyone in the country with access to better healthcare services far outweighs my meager $1,800 a year contribution to society. Thank You, President Obama, for taking monumental action here at home in the USA. The Affordable Care Act will be how I remember you best.
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