Looking for Excellent Health Insurance Company for Husband and I

Updated on November 30, 2010
V.G. asks from Boca Raton, FL
10 answers

My husband needs to get an operation on his throat sooner than later, and he is not covered by his work because it is too much extra per month. We are looking for a really good, honest health insurance policy where I can later add my daughter who is still covered under Medicaid for the next 4 years. I'd like to find a company that is awesome with customer service, and empathic. Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated. Trying to shy away from the giants like Humana, but don't have many other choices it seems. Thanks in advance!

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J.R.

answers from Glens Falls on

Please talk to your husband's employer about getting on to the plan at work. Group coverage is more comprehensive and more cost effective than individual coverage 99% of the time. If he rejected coverage when first eligible, he probably cannot go on the employer plan until the open enrollment period, which for many companies in January 1 (not always, but many times) so he needs to ask about it now as the period of time to sign up is usually in advance of Jan 1. The other ways they could let him change his mind is if he has had a family status change - recently being 30 days. A family status change would be something like marriage but could also be your daughter losing Medicaid coverage, or if you changed jobs and lost coverage in the last 30 days. The reason for these rules is that they don't want you to sign up and pay for coverage only once you find out you are sick. That would kind of be like only paying for car insurance after the accident. Be aware that group coverage can also have a pre-ex waiting period although many employers have eliminated these provisions.

If he cannot get on the employer plan in a reasonable period of time, use a broker to look for individual coverage but expect that he can be rejected for individual coverage, or upcharged if he has not had coverage in the recent past and has a pre-existing condition. If the condition is not too severe, he may be approved for coverage but there will be a pre-ex waiting period which is typically 12 months (in fact it is limited by federal law to 12 months). Then he would have to pay for coverage for a year and wait for treatment. The last option is your state's uninsured risk pool. Usually to get coverage through the risk pool, you will need to establish residency for a period of time and demonstrate that he has no coverage available to him (by showing them rejections for individual coverage). Most state risk pools also have pre-ex periods but they also have open enrollment periods and sometimes, not always, pre-ex is waived during open enrollment sign ups, which again are often Jan 1 so you need to hurry and find out about this. The high risk pool premium is a higher cost than individual coverage, but sometimes, not always, there are subsidies available due to income. Google Florida high risk insurance pool to get info. Again, I urge you to act quickly because of the time of year.

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M.E.

answers from Chicago on

Depending on what type of condition your husband has, it is not likely he will be able to purchase insurance on his own due to his pre-existing condition. If he is still able to enroll in his company's plan, this will probably be your best (and cheapest) option.

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J.M.

answers from Boston on

Move to Canada.

Sorry to be flip, but you don't have a lot of great options.

Good luck.

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D.M.

answers from Detroit on

V.---I would rethink declining the employer provided insurance. It is most likely the most cost effective policy that you will be able to get. My husband recently got a new job but it did not provide health insurance as he is the only employee in the US. It is a management position so the company offered him additional $ to purchase our own policy. We found that buying insurance on our own is really expensive, particularly if we want to get any kind of coverage at all.

That being said, you should look for an insurance broker who can find the best policy for you according to your needs. Most indepenent insurance companies/agents offer that kind of personalized service. So, if I were you I would go to your husband's employers HR dept and see what could be done there and then compare it with what you can get from and independent insurance agent.

Good luck and I pray everything goes well for your hubby. D.

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D.W.

answers from Gainesville on

I went thru Blue Cross Blue Shield but do know that you may end up paying more than what you'd pay thru work since he has a pre existing condition and needs surgery. And with a pre-existing condition there is a 1 or 2 year waiting period (can't remember which one they told me when we got our policy). So if he needs it sooner rather than later it might be worth investigating policies and the policy he could get at work with group benefits to see which one will work better for your situation.

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S.B.

answers from Dallas on

Most of the time, health insurance through your employee is less expensive than buying it on the open market. You might want to call an independent insurance agency who represents several companies and ask them to compare the coverage and the prices for you.

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M.K.

answers from Los Angeles on

we have had scott and white and blue cross, and both are good and honest

T.M.

answers from Modesto on

I have blueshield through my job and it's pretty good coverage. there is a 1500 deductible tho for the year tho. You wont find any personal insurance that is any cheaper than what your husbands premium from work would be, trust me I tried everything. Our premium pretty much takes half of my husbands paycheck. You learn to deal with it tho. It's better to be covered than not, seriously.

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T.J.

answers from Seattle on

I agree with everyone else, his employer likely has the best coverage. And if his throat condition has already been diagnosed you don't have a lot of choices. I do medical billing and my favorite insurance companies are blue cross, blue shield, and aetna. The absolute worst i've ever dealt with are united and pacificare. HTH!

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S.S.

answers from Chicago on

Honest health insurance Co?

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