Buy 2013 Health Insurance Plans before Dec. 31 2013 in Colorado Save $$$

Did you know you could still buy health insurance plans, with a significant lower premium than Connect for Health Colorado offers, depending on your income, and health conditions. The premium is good for approximately 1 year and I will help you switch over to an Affordable Care Act compliant plan in the year 2014.  Call Jo Anne Bly, 719-434-2015 and I can email you a quote or email me at JoAnneBly@PeakInsuranceBroker.com  Zip codes for Colorado residents only.

Connect for Health Colorado Website needs Streamlining!

People are finding out in the state of Colorado, that the process to sign up on the Connect for Health Colorado application process is taking weeks.  The clog in this system is a mandatory step requiring shoppers seeking tax credits to be first tuned down for Medicaid, worries heath care officials across the state, as Connect for Health Colorado wades through its second month in business. Only 3,408 people have signed up, last statistics reported.

Given that health insurance is a risk-based business meaning that affordability is often determined by the number of health people who buy in, those numbers need to rise!

Why do I need a Health Insurance Broker?

Why do I need an Insurance Broker?

Why is it important to choose a health insurance broker? Why not work directly with the insurance company? These are questions that you may be asking too! If you live in Colorado go to www.PeakInsuranceBroker.com

 

Why is it important to choose an insurance broker?

A health insurance broker (technically referred to in the state of Colorado as an independent health insurance agent) is an agent that can work with many different insurance companies simultaneously.

Many agents are captive agents; meaning that they can only represent one insurance company and would be outside the bounds of their contract to even be licensed with another insurance company.  A captive agent will struggle to meet the needs of their clients because their options are obviously quite limited. A CO health insurance broker (independent agent) such  as the representatives of Peak Insurance Broker.com, can shop their client's case to multiple insurance companies and help their clients compare offers and plans from many different insurance companies.

Why not work directly with the insurance company?

In the state of Colorado the Department of Regulatory Agencies Colorado Division of Insurance regulates the insurance premiums. There are laws in place to make sure that the consumer will get the exact same price for insurance whether they use a broker/agent or go directly to the company. The insurance companies set the rates and the rates are regulated so as to make sure they are the same no matter where the consumer purchases the policy. There is no such as thing as “getting a better deal”, obtaining a “discount”, or “price haggling” from one specific agent.

An advantage to working with a broker versus purchasing directly from the insurance company is that the broker can help you compare plans from multiple companies side by side on an ongoing basis. A broker can also give you a degree of personal time and attention that a call center certainly cannot offer.

What should you look for in a health insurance broker anyway?

Your broker should take the time to understand your personal situation, your financial objectives, and your preferences for coverage. Your broker should be available to assist you over the phone when you need help. Your broker should give you guidance as to the pros and cons of the different health insurance companies in Colorado (they should be able to give you good objective advice and many times they should be able to tell you things about different companies that would not be able to be published online). Your broker should be honest and helpful.

So what are you waiting for contact www.PeakInsuranceBroker.com today!

Obama Trying to Deal with Cancellations

President Barack Obama says he'll do everything  he can do to help people coping with health insurance cancellations, but legally and practically his options appear limited.  That means the latest political problem engulfing Obama's health care overhaul may not be resolved quickly, cleanly or completely.

As a Broker, I have a company were they have mailed out cancellation letters for individual insurance and my client has not received the letter yet.  The couple has until November 15, 2013 to mail back the Acceptance Letter to extend their policy into the year 2014.  Time is running out for this couple and there is no letter in site!

Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Testifes on Capitol Hill and Takes Some Heat!

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas one of Health and Human services Secretary Sebelius (Oversees Obamacare) most aggressive questioners, read aloud from a page of the White House website that says: "If you like your plan, you can keep it and you don't have to change a thing due to the health care law."

Turing to Sebelius, he said, "Well, we know that lying to Congress is a crime, but unfortunately lying to the American people is not.  I'd just like to as you a simple true or false question.  Is that statement on the White House website true or is it false?  Sebelius said, "Sir I think the statement is that..." before Cornyn cut her off. "Is it true or is it false?" Madame Secretary?" he asked.

She said "a vast majority" of people who are insured through their jobs would keep their plans and "a majority" of the 11 million in the individual market will keep plans with stronger coverage while others will have to choose if they have a brand new plan and not a grandfathered plan.

Crornyn responded, "I will just ask that the record note that you have refused to answer my question whether it's true or false."

3,408 Enrolled in Connect for Health Colorado as of 11/7/13

The figures were released the same day that officials overseeing Connect for Health Colorado announced that 3,408 people were enrolled through plans purchased during the marketplace's first month. By comparison, Connect for Health Colorado is about 2.5 percent of the way toward its goal of covering 136,000 people by Dec. 31, 2014.  They have a ways to go!

In Colorado 250,000 Served Cancellation Letters

23 Insurance Companies in state sent cancellation letters as their policy is ending! Another 143,116 people lost plans carried by 10 insurance companies on the small group market. Throughout the nation, at least 3.5 million people have faced similar cancellations, The Associated Press reported Wednesday morning. Nearly a quarter of a million Coloradans received cancellation letters from their health insurance carriers in recent months.  Some people have not received their cancellation notice and are in a panic on when it will come in the mail. 

Will Insurance Cost More?

This will vary a lot from person to person. Some people who are buying a bare-bones plan right now will likely see higher premiums under the Affordable Care Act. They will be getting more benefits, but paying more in premiums! 

Some people will get financial help buying that more robust insurance; people who earn less than 400 percent of the federal poverty line (about $45,000 for an individual can use a tax subsidy to buy their plan. 

Cancellation, Then Sticker Shock!

Many of my clients have recently received letters notifying them that their health insurance plan was canceled because it did not cover certain benefits required under the new law.  With Anthem, customers can sign an Acceptance Letter to extend their present plan until their anniversary month of 2014.  They can also go to ConnectforHealthCo and work on a quote which in most cases have a higher premium!  One of my clients tried this, and said, "We are buying insurance that has a higher deductible, and higher premium"!  Please call me if you need help on this!
www.peakinsurancebroker.com   Hang in there, it can only get better!