Arizona Health Insurance Brokers Since 1988
Effective July 1, 2012, HealthNet individual and family members in Arizona will receive a rate increase as follows:
HMO increase
9.75% for all counties
PPO increase
6.75% in Pima County
10.35% in Maricopa County and all other areas
HealthNet’s dental and vision coverage will also have a rate increase, going up from $19.53 to $20.
There are many health insurance companies offering individual/family coverage in the state of Arizona. These companies include Blue Cross Blue Shield, HealthNet, UnitedHealthOne (also known as Golden Rule), Aetna, Humana, Cigna and others.
To receive a detailed medical insurance quote, please fill out our online quote request form. Coverage is available in Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff, and all areas of the state.
As a student at the University of Arizona, you’re eligible for an excellent health insurance plan with no underwriting. This is great news for a college student that meets the University of Arizona’s eligibility requirements (7 units). It’s also great news for college students that have a pre-existing condition that might prevent them from finding individual coverage through a major medical health carrier such as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Cigna, Health Net, Humana, or UnitedHealthOne.
Currently, the University of Arizona’s plan breaks down to roughly $130 per month, although you’re not allowed to make monthly payments. According to their price sheet you’re required to pay $340.34 per month for the first three months of the year for the spring term and likewise for the fall term – which has past – $214.34 per month for the first three months of the fall term (August, September, and October).
Okay, so you’ve made the choice – it’s finally time to get some health insurance. Time to get that weird mole checked out, get a long overdue check-up, and donate a kidney. Well, maybe skip the kidney donation. But, how do you do it? Do you google health insurance and start at the VERY beginning? Should you call a broker? If you should call a broker, which one!? Do I even need a broker? What’s coinsurance!?? AAAHH!!!
Slow down there.
I’m going to show you how to purchase health insurance. After all, Obama’s Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is encouraging (forcing) everyone to become more proactive with and responsible for their health and health insurance. So let’s start from the beginning.
I’m not quite 65 yet (a couple of years to go) and my health insurance policy from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona costs me over $400 each month. My current policy has a deductible of $3000 per year, and I am responsible for all of my medical expenses until I reach that $3000 number. Each time I go to a doctor, fill a prescription or get an x-ray, I have to pay for it until I hit that $3000 limit.
One of the nice things about turning 65 years old is that you’re probably eligible for a Medicare supplement insurance policy. A Medicare supplement will almost always cost you less than the health insurance policy you had before turning 65, and your out of pocket costs when you use the supplement will probably be close to zero.
A recent article on AARP’s website states,
“Healthcare.gov, launched in the summer of 2010, takes much of the mystery and frustration out of shopping for a health plan. For the first time, consumers can find and compare prices and benefits for thousands of private insurance policies as well as community health services and public health programs like Medicaid or Medicare.
The one-stop shopping website — required by the new health care law — has details on more than 4,400 plans across the country from more than 225 insurers and will be updated monthly. For anyone who’s searched online for airplane tickets or books, the process will be very familiar. And a novice should be able to get the hang of it pretty easily.”
Oh, if only it were true.
If you find it frustrating to wade through all of the different versions of the Medicare supplement and Medicare Advantage plans that are available here in Arizona, you’re not alone.
There are actually only two kinds of Medicare plans. The original plan was designed by the US Government, and it comes in 12 different versions. The versions are called Plan A, Plan B, Plan C — all the way up to Plan L. The real difference between the plans is how much you pay for your medical bills and how much your insurance company and/or the government pays. Here in Arizona, we find that Plan F is the most popular; under Plan F, if you go into a hospital and the bills are $100,000, the government pays about $80,000 and your insurance company pays about $20,000. Pretty simple. Usually Plan A costs less than Plan B, Plan B costs less than Plan C, and so on.
When you are planning to travel overseas, you may be told to get certain immunization shots to protect yourself. For example, you may need a vaccination for Yellow Fever or Typhoid.
The first place to check is with your regular doctor. Your doctor’s office might already provide this service, and since you are already a patient, you shouldn’t have any trouble making an appointment. If your doctor’s office doesn’t carry the shot you need, ask if they can order it for you. This might take weeks, so be sure to plan ahead.
Associations and franchisors find it difficult, if not impossible, to find any major medical health insurance carrier willing to offer a health plan to their members and franchisees. The insurance carriers consider the franchisees and the franchisor as separate companies, and they don’t look upon the franchisees employees as employees of the franchisor. Because of this, franchisees are usually on their own when trying to provide health insurance to their employees or for themselves. A franchisee with only a handful of employees may find it prohibitively expensive to provide health insurance benefits to his or her employees.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) mandated that certain preventive care services be covered at 100%. Below is a list of most of the preventive health services that are included.
As long as your medical visit is at a network provider for preventive reasons, and not due to a symptom you are experiencing, your insurance company must cover these services at no cost to you. There is no copay, deductible, or coinsurance to meet.
