2016 Pre-Open Enrollment Newsletter

September 22, 2016

Hello everyone!  It’s been a little while for many of us, and I hope this message finds you and your families very well.  First off, I again want to thank each of you for having allowed me to assist you with your health insurance needs in the past.  I look forward to being a resource to all of you if you ever need assistance in the future.  

As always, I try to keep my clients aware of any coming changes regarding their plans, and the health insurance market in general.  I wanted to reach out as we head into the end of the year to prompt everyone to begin thinking about their health insurance options for 2017.  We already know a decent amount of information on some of the upcoming changes to the market for the next year.  PLANS WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE UNTIL NOVEMBER, when Open Enrollment Season will officially begin, so at this time I cannot answer specific questions about 2017 plans.  This message is just to begin the process of alerting everyone that in a few weeks, we may want to begin the process of evaluating and/or changing your plans.  I expect that to only be the case for about 20% or so of you however. 

I always seemingly get much busier as Open Enrollment proceeds, so I would encourage anyone to reach out in early November unless I reach out to you first, as opposed to waiting until mid/late-December.  This year, the Marketplace has indicated that the December 15th deadline for a January 1 start date is a HARD-SET deadline (as they have tended to extend it in the past).  They would like to get away from offering extensions, so this year I would plan on December 15 being the last day to enroll for January 1.  I would encourage anyone changing to do so in November before Thanksgiving though as the later you wait, the busier I get, and also the busier companies get.  The Medicare side of my business tends to keep me busier often than the individual health side as well.  Last year I had MANY January 1 enrollments that did not have their plan information until late February, just due to how behind some companies were in processing enrollments.  (Sorry for those of you that had to experience that uncertainty!)  Therefore, the earlier you all take care of your enrollment the better you will be, and the more peace of mind you will have that it is complete, and the less stressed I will be as well!

All of the companies have filed their initial rates with the Colorado Division of Insurance.  Unfortunately there will be premium increases coming for EVERYONE, as usual, and some of you will be losing your plans altogether and will need to change.  Here is a minor summary of things that we may need to discuss.

PLANS STAYING RELATIVELY THE SAME FOR 2017 (There will be rate increases, but generally if you’re happy here, I’d recommend keeping the plan for 2017)

– Kaiser

– Cigna

– Anthem HMO (Pathway Network)

– Colorado Choice (For Southern and Rural CO)

PLANS GOING AWAY FOR 2017 (WE NEED TO DEFINITELY TALK IN OPEN ENROLLMENT AND CHANGE YOUR PLAN!!!)

– Anthem PPO

– Humana

– UnitedHealthcare On and Off Exchange Plans

IF YOU’RE HAPPY WITH YOUR PLAN, AND IT’S AVAILABLE FOR 2017, THEN YOU DON’T NEED TO TAKE ACTION.  Also, if you’re getting a tax credit to lower your premiums through the marketplace, you will be re-enrolled for 2017 into your same plan and a new tax credit will be calculated based on the same income numbers.  You will only be dis-enrolled if you ACTIVELY choose to dis-enroll or enroll into a new plan.

 

I would recommend that if everything is going generally well, and you’re on a plan staying for 2017, you should probably just KEEP YOUR PLAN as it will roll over right into its 2017 version.  I’m confident that we thoroughly thought through the reasons that we put you on that plan in the first place, i.e. premiums, coverage, doctors, networks etc, and that we chose an appropriate one for you at the time.  If you are receiving a tax credit to lower your premiums, generally, your 2017 tax credit will be calculated by Connect for Health, and applied to your plan for 2017, assuming that there have been no significant changes to your income.  We will have to wait until we see the full layout of plans in November, but I expect generally few changes to networks of doctors on the remaining plans, and generally few if any major changes to overall coverage.  If something has changed with your health, then generally, we should probably evaluate that you are on a plan that will save you the most money.

WHO IS THIS COMPANY CALLED “BRIGHT HEALTH”?

You may hear about a new company entering the marketplace for 2017 called Bright Health.  I recently attended a rollout meeting that the company held in the last month.  I was generally impressed with the approach that the founders of the company were taking and their level of expertise in being able to put together a sustainable plan for the future.  However, I am NOT inclined to recommend that anyone change to them.  They said that their pricing will be roughly in line with the pricing that Cigna will be offering, and their network will be limited to doctors and hospitals in the Centura network.  Well, Cigna also has Centura in their cheaper plan networks, as well as other doctors and networks as well, so I’m not sure why anyone would go with Bright Health since it wouldn’t give them a cheaper coverage, nor would it give them a network of doctors that wasn’t available from another carrier.  Many of you lived through the collapse of CO HealthOP last year and having to change plans so I would be more wary to go with a new or un-proven company in the marketplace.

WHAT SHOULD I DO AS OPEN ENROLLMENT APPROACHES?

If you are on a plan that is terminating, start thinking about getting things together to change.  Also begin thinking about or discussing with your family that if you had to give up some doctors, which are you willing to give up and which are you not.  EVERY company now has a network, and one that has seemingly narrowed in recent years.  That is the reality of the current insurance market.  If you have several/many doctors, it is fairly unlikely that any plan will have all of them in network.  Anthem PPO and UnitedHealthcare easily had the largest networks of all the carriers, and unfortunately, those plans will not exist anymore.  Some tradeoffs will probably have to be made in order to save you the most money on your insurance coverages.  

MY #1 GOAL IS TO SAVE YOU THE MOST MONEY POSSIBLE ON YOUR INSURANCE AND HEALTH COSTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

Again, I am a free service to you all.  You do not pay anymore for your premiums with ANY company for going through me as your broker, nor any other broker.  I am paid a credit, which is equal to every other broker in the market, by the carrier for helping to advise you on plans and coverage.  I am certified with the Connect for Health marketplace and all of the carriers on it.  My sole job is to advise you which plan out of the many available would be most appropriate for you and save you the most money overall per year based on premium and coverages, on which doctors you see, and in regards to your health status and any medical treatments you may have upcoming, or are likely to need.  So with that being said, if you have new health needs that you’re planning for, also reach out to me as there may be a different plan that will save you more money overall.  Again, if everything is relatively the same and you’re generally happy with your plan, the one that we put you originally is still the most likely to be the most appropriate for you.

GIVE ME FEEDBACK!

I always like getting feedback from all of you on how the companies have been handling your health and claims.  Both good and bad feedback helps!  In turn, it keeps me more aware of changes in the marketplace and how the rubber meets the road and how the carriers are treating you all IN REALITY.  This helps me to relay the information and make better recommendations for you all.

 

Again, I hope all has been well, and I look forward to speaking to many of you in the coming weeks!  As always, if I can help any friends or family with any of their health insurance needs, please let me know.  Also don’t forget that I’m also contracted with dozens of companies for life insurance and annuities as well.

 

Have a great start to the Fall Season!

 

Sincerely,

Bret Padilla