Protect and Insure

03/23/2020

YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE. In this strange and trying time we are living in I want to take a moment and remind everyone that health insurance is still attainable.
If you do not have health insurance and are concerned about having protection available but at the same time concerned about the often extreme costs of having coverage, I can help.

There are short term plans available that have a few downfalls but are absolutely better than going without. These are much, much less costly than the major medical plans, they are built on extremely strong networks and most of the time the out of pocket expenses are much less than the major plans. Another great feature is that we can usually get you coverage starting the NEXT day.

If you don't have insurance and have been waiting for a good reason to get it...now might be that time.

There's no commitment, no contracts, and it's free to find out what's what. So contact me for more information and you could at least have that piece of mind in place by tomorrow.

12/16/2019

Open enrollment for under age 65 major medical insurance has been extended until 3:00 AM E.T. December 18th. If you thought you missed the boat and you need some guidance getting your health insurance situated for 2020 please reach out and we'll help in any way we can.

11/26/2019

This is pretty big. it can't come fast enough but if it proves consistent it could massively increase the ease of early detecting which in most cases is the key to successful treatment.

Toshiba Corporation announced that their new technology can detect 13 different types of cancer by testing just one drop of blood, the accuracy rate is an astonishing 99%.

11/22/2019

It's a very long road but hopefully this marks the beginning of the end.

MORGANTOWN — World-leading brain experts at West Virginia University’s Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute are celebrating the historic breakthrough Alzheimer patients around the globe have been awaiting.

11/15/2019

This is one positive step needed. Now we need to tackle the other 10,000 steps.

The proposal will likely face a legal challenge from hospitals and insurers.

01/10/2019

Possible good news. Many people don't hold their cash value whole life insurance policies in a trust so it's considered part of ones personal estate. The cash value of those policies is looked at as an assert and more often than not will exceed the limit of exemption therefore putting one at risk for denial of Medicaid or forcing them to lapse a policy. Planning to be on Medicaid is not favorable because it takes away ones flexibility and possible dignity as they enter long term care. However, the reality is that there are many people in this category and this bill could positively affect those people when it comes to long term care. Let's hope DC does the decent thing.

Introduced by Reps. Kenny Marchant, R-Texas and Brian Higgins, D-N.Y., would permit seniors, regardless of their health status, to use life insurance policies they already own to fund a wide range of health care costs, including long-term care expenses and long-term care insurance premiums.

10/23/2018

Well it's that time again and admittedly I've been lazy and dragging my feet on re-certifying for the government silliness we all call Obamacare. If you've ever had to deal with government testing and certification you know it's akin to most circus activity. However, the show must go on so I'm taking care of business. But as a prelude to our upcoming open enrollment season I thought I'd share some of the things I find both witty and sad,

To start it off, take a look at this photo "they" use to show the "Maximum out of pocket" costs (not including premium) for the 2019 year. Of course they refer to this as "cost sharing". Just look at the joy on the faces of these people as they are obviously delighted that the costs have risen to such enormous amounts. Why didn't anyone predict this or point it out years ago? I guess we just never saw it coming /sarc.

11/30/2017

A word of caution for any do-it-yourself individuals looking into exchange plans. Please, please, please with sugar on top, be extremely careful if simply price shopping. There are multiple health insurance companies that have developed extremely small network plans and if you simply concentrate on the bottom line, you could be in for a very costly surprise. For example, Priority Health has a "St. Joseph Mercy" network, a "St. John Providence" network and a "Beaumont Health" network. These are all very limited in where you can go for coverage. If you are part of the St. John's network and end up going to Beaumont hospital for (non-emergency) services, you will be responsible for 100% of the cost.
This might be fine for some people, but please make sure you know the details regarding your networks before you make a choice.
Or, as always, you can simply call on me and I'll do the homework for you.
Happy Open Enrollment!

11/30/2017

Going back a bit, I warned not to panic over the President's comments that he was getting rid of the subsidies in health plans. As I stated, it didn't happen. The subsidies are alive and well. But on another note, the premiums are also alive and well, and growing exponentially every year. Nearing the home-stretch of open enrollment, I thought I'd share what a PPO looks like these days. Family of 3, notice the HUGE subsidy.
In case you aren't familiar, to the left you will see the premium this family would have to pay for the "privilege" of having a PPO plan from a major company. Under that premium is the price someone not qualifying for a subsidy would have to pay. The deductible is quite reasonable by today's standards but imagine the out of pocket ON TOP of the premium. Also, the doc visits and Rx are noted as "after deductible". This means the family has to meet the $1k in deductible before getting co-payments for office visits or Rx.
Of course there are many HMO plans still available but only one or two decent PPO's. This is an extreme case but it's still reality in health insurance for 2018. PPO's are becoming like unicorns.
There are a couple of other options for the right people. They are based on nationwide PPO's and don't cost anywhere near these premiums. Contact us for details.
Happy Open Enrollment!

11/21/2017

This sums it up. Reach out if you are in a bind, there are still some options and alternatives.

10/19/2017

Subsidy update!
As usual, the headline in this article is misleading because nothing official has actually happened. BUT this type of activity is exactly what I was expecting when the President announced an end to subsidies last week. There is movement to put something into place which will, in most cases, allow the cost reduction to stay in place. Whether the partisan players will actually agree on something soon is to be determined. But one thing that seems to be playing out is that again, as usual, the govt is moving to put something temporary in place to kick the can down the road and avoid irreversible social and political backlash.

Rate increases were/are in place due to the nature of the beast and in many cases those increases have also taken this latest move into consideration. But this still has a long way to go before any concrete answers will reveal themselves. Continue to be patient and don't jump to quick conclusions. I will be sure to report as soon as any solid answers can be found.
As always, feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns regarding your health insurance needs. I'm here to help in whatever way I can.

Sens. Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray have reached a deal "in principle" to restore Affordable Care Act cost-sharing reduction payments for two years in exchange for more state flexibility in Obamacare.

10/13/2017

IMPORTANT HEALTH INSURANCE UPDATE:
The President is signing an executive order that will supposedly halt government paid subsidies to insurance companies immediately. What does this mean? Well, on the surface and in the simplest explanation it means just what it says. Right now an enormous number of individual health insurance plans are written though the exchange where people receive their plans at a lower rate than the insurance companies actually charge. The portion that the insured doesn't pay is paid for by the government (the taxpayer).

DIGGING DEEPER. When the law was first passed congress allowed for these subsidies without the proper appropriation to do so within the law, this is according to the DOJ and "legal experts" in the administration. So the President's order is going back to the beginning and disallowing those payments based on the lack of authority to make them therefore stopping them immediately.

FINANCIAL:
Some insurance companies have been devastated by the ACA and more or less walked away from individual health insurance. But some have thrived greatly. Keeping it simple, the govt. forced companies to pay for certain services for all, like birth control and maternity for single men or mental health care for infants. Then they limited those companies to a certain percentage of profit. BUT, the nature of the beast pushed rates higher and higher and many, many people don't really see the actual cost of those plans. Example: A couple age 59 might be paying $450 per month for their plan through the exchange, but depending on the circumstances that plan likely costs $1100-1400 per month. The govt (taxpayers) are picking up $700-$1000 per month just for that couple. Now multiply that by potentially millions of people. The insurance companies are receiving big money and even at a small percentage of profit, when the revenue is billions, that profit looks pretty good.

THE PANIC:
Right now the partisanship is exploding and people from the side that originally pushed the law are filing suits across the country. Nancy Pelosi actually had the nerve to say Trump’s expected action would increase Americans’ health premiums by 20 percent or more. But here's a newsflash for Pelosi, the premiums are already slated to jump approx. 20% and they have been doing it for nearly 8 years. I don't recall her complaining in the past about rate hikes. So again, the Partisanship is going to be off the charts on this one. The important thing is to look through the fog and focus on the reality of how this is going to affect you.

THE GAME:
What most news outlets are not talking about is at this point, this is a chess move to try and get congress off their rear ends to find a fix for the whole mess that is the ACA. The President stated that the subsidies may continue if a bipartisan agreement can be reached on health care. That's a big tell. And it's probably not going to be talked about much in the press because it offers a solution instead of just fear. The bottom line of this move is the President wants the inaction to stop and something productive to be done so he's taking what I believe are pretty drastic but what appear to be legal measures to force some hands.

THE RUB:
This game from both sides of our political isle is at the cost of the people. It always is and nothing about this is different. It is my belief that Insurance companies will not simply start cancelling policies but there will no doubt be massive scrambles within the industry to try and figure out where their next golf-outing money is going to come from. In theory, if one is paying $450 per month for their plan and it should cost $1100 per month, then again, in theory, this move would cause them to owe $1100 per month. That's not realistic and if it were the case the insurance companies would collapse in no time because people just can't afford those rates. So something will be done rapidly whether on the side of the insurance companies, or a rolling back of enforcement of this order by the administration. I would advise those who are getting subsidies to not panic as I do not see the admin leaving so many who would be affected out in the cold.

FOLLOWING UP:
The crystal ball was quite clear 7 years ago. It was very easy to predict where it was going to end up. Right now, it's not so clear and admittedly I don't have the final answer. But I will stay on top of the developments and inform as the facts come out. Relax for the moment, there will be solutions.