The current open enrollment period for Arizona residents wanting to purchase a health insurance policy began Nov. 15 and ends Feb. 15. People who want a Blue Cross or a United HealthCare plan must pay attention to the open enrollment dates. However, one health insurance company offers a high-quality health insurance plan that meets all Affordable Care Act requirements any time during the year – but only for people who live in Maricopa or Pima counties.
The most popular health insurance plans sold in Arizona during 2014 are plans from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Assurant, Health Net and Meritus. Blue Cross is by far the largest health insurance company in Arizona. Meritus is a newcomer, but its plans are proving very popular. United HealthCare, one of the largest health insurance companies in the United States, did not offer plans to Arizona individuals during 2014, but has re-entered the Arizona marketplace for 2015.
There are many different kinds of health insurance plans to choose from for 2015, and you can become quite overwhelmed by visiting the government’s health insurance website (healthcare.gov). After you input your family’s information into their system, you will be given a list of hundreds of health insurance policies from which to choose. You might think selecting the most expensive plan would be your best choice. We have found that, most of the time, unadvised people choose the wrong plan. If you do select the wrong plan, you could be stuck with that plan for a year.
Usually the most expensive plan is not the best plan for you. For example, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona has a plan for a 40-year-old living in Maricopa County that costs $410 per month. If you buy that plan and you get very sick more than once during the year, you could have to pay medical bills totaling $6,350 out of your own pocket. However, Blue Cross has a plan for that same 40-year-old that costs just $290, and with that plan, no matter how sick you became during the year, your out-of-pocket expenses could not exceed $3,500.
For most people, the new 2015 plans are more expensive than health insurance plans sold just a couple of years ago, but the U.S. government may help pay a lot of your monthly premium. You can qualify for what the government calls tax credits to help pay your monthly premiums, even if you make a nice income; it all depends on the number of people in your household and how much money you’ll make during 2015. Many people find their tax credits pay about half of their monthly premium. If your monthly premium amount is $400 and the government gives you a monthly tax credit of $275, the bill that you’ll receive from your health insurance carrier each month will be only $125. The government pays your tax credit amount directly to your health insurance company each month.
If you make too much money to qualify for the tax credits, then you’ll end up paying the full amount. If you do not have a health insurance policy that meets the Affordable Care Act requirements, you will be fined. You can see how much your fine would amount to by answering a few questions online at healthcare.com/penalty-calculator.
Tony Lehrman is the CEO of Lehrman Group, one of Arizona’s largest health insurance brokerages. He became a bar mitzvah in 1964. He has spent more than 25 years offering consultation services as a broker of health insurance programs to individuals, families, the self-employed, and both large and small businesses in Arizona. He has served as an advisor to major nationwide financial brokerage firms and has been a member of broker advisory boards of major Arizona health insurance companies.
623-455-6997 | info@lehrmangroup.com | LehrmanGroup.com
