6 insurers will offer 162 plans through Illinois enrollment system
As the federal government hurtled toward a shutdown over President Barack Obama's health care law, officials said Monday they're pushing ahead to launch enrollment systems where millions of Americans can start signing up for new insurance options.
"The Affordable Care Act is moving forward," the president told reporters Monday at the White House. "You can't shut it down."
In Illinois, officials said more than 1.6 million people in the state will wake up Tuesday and be able log on to a new state website, getcoveredillinois.gov, to begin the process of determining whether they're eligible for government subsidies.
Starting at 7 a.m., consumers can get their first look at the 162 plans offered by six insurers through the Illinois exchange. Deputy Gov. Cristal Thomas said a call center staffed with operators who will walk consumers through the law and answer enrollment questions should open at 8 a.m.
"We are in good shape," Thomas said. "We're pretty confident the website is going to be fine."
To be covered by Jan. 1, people need to sign up and pay for their first month of coverage through the exchanges by Dec. 15. Open enrollment continues through March 31. Those who do not have health insurance in 2014 must pay a tax penalty, starting at $95 per individual or 1 percent of household income, whichever is greater.
The state over the weekend also released more information about the number of plans offered by each of the six insurers participating in the Illinois exchange. In Cook County, consumers will be able to choose among plans offered by five carriers — Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Land of Lincoln Health, Humana Inc., Aetna Inc. and Coventry Health.
Only two carriers — Blue Cross and Land of Lincoln, the startup insurer launched with the help of a $160 million federal loan — will offer both individual and small-group plans on the exchanges statewide.
Humana and Coventry will offer the most individual plans in the state, with each providing more than 30 separate options.
Blue Cross, Illinois' dominant insurer by market share, will offer 16 individual plans and 19 for small business, while Land of Lincoln will offer 19 individual plans and 16 small-group plans.
While not all insurers have released rate and cost information about those plans, Land of Lincoln late Monday issued some details on the 2014 plans it will offer, providing an early window into some of what consumers can expect to see when they start comparing plans.
Without taking into account federal subsidies, the nonprofit insurer's monthly premiums range from $107 for a nonsmoker under age 21 who lives in Moline to $1,113 for a 64-year-old smoker in Lake County. Deductibles range from $500 to $6,250.
The health care law established four broad categories of coverage — platinum, gold, silver and bronze — for which premiums vary based on the amount of out-of-pocket health care expenses consumers are required to pay. Bronze plans have the lowest monthly premiums, but they cover only 60 percent of projected medical costs. Platinum plans have higher premiums but cover 90 percent of medical costs.
For a 30-year-old in Chicago making more than $46,000 a year, Land of Lincoln's bronze plans have monthly premiums ranging from $195 to $236. Annual deductibles in those plans are $4,000 to $6,250. If the same person made just under $16,000 annually, monthly premiums drop to $66 to $107 with federal subsidies.
"We're encouraging people to really get out there and shop," said Dan Yunker, Land of Lincoln's chief executive. "It's not just that monthly premium that's important here; the total cost (of) the health plan is what's going to be important."
Yunker also urged consumers to ensure that their preferred doctors, hospitals and other health care providers are in the plan's network. Each of the 35 plans Land of Lincoln is offering in Illinois has the same network of providers.
Other insurers, however, plan to offer so-called narrow network plans, which often have lower rates at the expense of restricting the number of hospitals and doctors available to patients
Creating the insurance marketplaces has been extremely difficult, and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stressed Monday that some glitches are likely.
"We know that there are opponents who are desperate for anything that could possibly go wrong," she said. But she noted that even the rollout of Apple's latest operating system was not without problems.
"No one is calling on Apple to not sell devices for a year or get out of the business because the whole thing is a failure. Everyone just assumes, 'Well, there's a problem, they'll fix it and we'll move on.' … We're likely to have some glitches. We will fix them and move on."
As the federal government hurtled toward a shutdown over President Barack Obama's health care law, officials said Monday they're pushing ahead to launch enrollment systems where millions of Americans can start signing up for new insurance options.
"The Affordable Care Act is moving forward," the president told reporters Monday at the White House. "You can't shut it down."
In Illinois, officials said more than 1.6 million people in the state will wake up Tuesday and be able log on to a new state website, getcoveredillinois.gov, to begin the process of determining whether they're eligible for government subsidies.
Starting at 7 a.m., consumers can get their first look at the 162 plans offered by six insurers through the Illinois exchange. Deputy Gov. Cristal Thomas said a call center staffed with operators who will walk consumers through the law and answer enrollment questions should open at 8 a.m.
"We are in good shape," Thomas said. "We're pretty confident the website is going to be fine."
To be covered by Jan. 1, people need to sign up and pay for their first month of coverage through the exchanges by Dec. 15. Open enrollment continues through March 31. Those who do not have health insurance in 2014 must pay a tax penalty, starting at $95 per individual or 1 percent of household income, whichever is greater.
The state over the weekend also released more information about the number of plans offered by each of the six insurers participating in the Illinois exchange. In Cook County, consumers will be able to choose among plans offered by five carriers — Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Land of Lincoln Health, Humana Inc., Aetna Inc. and Coventry Health.
Only two carriers — Blue Cross and Land of Lincoln, the startup insurer launched with the help of a $160 million federal loan — will offer both individual and small-group plans on the exchanges statewide.
Humana and Coventry will offer the most individual plans in the state, with each providing more than 30 separate options.
Blue Cross, Illinois' dominant insurer by market share, will offer 16 individual plans and 19 for small business, while Land of Lincoln will offer 19 individual plans and 16 small-group plans.
While not all insurers have released rate and cost information about those plans, Land of Lincoln late Monday issued some details on the 2014 plans it will offer, providing an early window into some of what consumers can expect to see when they start comparing plans.
Without taking into account federal subsidies, the nonprofit insurer's monthly premiums range from $107 for a nonsmoker under age 21 who lives in Moline to $1,113 for a 64-year-old smoker in Lake County. Deductibles range from $500 to $6,250.
The health care law established four broad categories of coverage — platinum, gold, silver and bronze — for which premiums vary based on the amount of out-of-pocket health care expenses consumers are required to pay. Bronze plans have the lowest monthly premiums, but they cover only 60 percent of projected medical costs. Platinum plans have higher premiums but cover 90 percent of medical costs.
For a 30-year-old in Chicago making more than $46,000 a year, Land of Lincoln's bronze plans have monthly premiums ranging from $195 to $236. Annual deductibles in those plans are $4,000 to $6,250. If the same person made just under $16,000 annually, monthly premiums drop to $66 to $107 with federal subsidies.
"We're encouraging people to really get out there and shop," said Dan Yunker, Land of Lincoln's chief executive. "It's not just that monthly premium that's important here; the total cost (of) the health plan is what's going to be important."
Yunker also urged consumers to ensure that their preferred doctors, hospitals and other health care providers are in the plan's network. Each of the 35 plans Land of Lincoln is offering in Illinois has the same network of providers.
Other insurers, however, plan to offer so-called narrow network plans, which often have lower rates at the expense of restricting the number of hospitals and doctors available to patients
Creating the insurance marketplaces has been extremely difficult, and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stressed Monday that some glitches are likely.
"We know that there are opponents who are desperate for anything that could possibly go wrong," she said. But she noted that even the rollout of Apple's latest operating system was not without problems.
"No one is calling on Apple to not sell devices for a year or get out of the business because the whole thing is a failure. Everyone just assumes, 'Well, there's a problem, they'll fix it and we'll move on.' … We're likely to have some glitches. We will fix them and move on."
Equally challenging for the Obama administration, the law remains a mystery to many Americans, particularly those who lack health insurance and who will be crucial to the law's success. Nearly three-fourths of those without coverage are not familiar with the new insurance marketplaces, according to a recent Gallup survey.
At the same time, several conservative groups are actively urging Americans not to sign up for health coverage.
"Oct. 1 is a kind of 'independence day' from the intrusive government-run state health exchanges," said Twila Brase, co-founder of the Citizens' Council for Health Freedom. "After months of waiting, we can now publicly declare that we will not be a part of this doomed plan."
State and federal officials urged consumers to seek assistance through a group of paid counselors called navigators who will help people compare and sign up for insurance plans.
While Illinois officials say they've trained more than 700 navigators, just more than 100 will have full federal certification by Tuesday, Thomas said. In response, the state made a last-minute push to ensure that licensed insurance brokers have updated their contact information in state and federal databases where the state websites can direct consumers.
"We do see (brokers) as an important resource," Thomas said. "We'd like to have more (certified navigators), but we know our partners are working on that, and we'll continue to work on it in the coming days and weeks."
0 comments:
Post a Comment