by Arman Vahdatinia | Jan 5, 2017 | Blue Shield of CA, Covered CA, Featured, Group Benefits, Health Insurance, Individual Benefits, News |
Sutter Health and Blue Shield of California have come to an agreement on a three year renewal of their provider contact through Dec. 31st, 2019. The contract is for all coverage – Individual, Group, Medi-Cal, and Medicare. Keep in mind that not all providers or facilities are available to all plans, so please double check with www.sutterhealth.org and www.blueshieldca.com for in-network specifics. Sutter Health participates in Blue Shield’s PPO plan through Covered CA, but please check for specifics on each respective...
by rmckenzie | Mar 12, 2014 | Anthem, Blue Shield of CA, Covered CA, Health Insurance, Health Net, Individual Benefits, Kaiser, L.A. Care, SHARP |
Federal officials announced last Wednesday that Americans can keep health insurance plans that fail to meet the standards of the Affordable Care Act for another two years. This latest delay allows insurers to renew the old plans as late as October 1, 2016, meaning customers who renew then would be covered for most of 2017. The option will only be available to people who renewed plans at the end of 2013. New subscribers will not be able to enroll in these plans. Those who are satisfied with their current coverage may take comfort in knowing they can put off shopping for health insurance for a few more years however, this does not necessarily mean that they will be getting a better “deal”. The old policies were canceled initially because they didn’t meet the higher standards set by the health reform law, which requires that all plans cover maternity care, prescription drugs and mental health, among other benefits. Many people who decide to keep their old plans may find out that they would have to pay higher rates to keep the same coverage. Even if rates are unchanged, some subscribers may find they need better coverage, since the plans being extended may not cover hospital stays, prescription drugs or other services. Having an educated broker to turn to for guidance in these changing times is proving to be a more valuable commodity than ever. Contact Bedrosian & Associates if you would like a free review of your current medical insurance plan versus the medical insurance plans...
by Ryan | Aug 14, 2013 | Group Benefits, Health Insurance, Individual Benefits, News |
Did you expect to have a reduced out-of-pocket maximum (worst case cap on medical expenses) next year? On July 12, 2013, the Obama Administration released that the out-of-pocket maximum caps for many working Americans has been postponed. An out-of-pocket maximum is the worst case that an individual or family would pay in a year for all of their combined medical expenses. For example if someone went into the hospital for a month an individual would hit their worst case of say $6,000 before all expenses additional expenses would be paid at 100% by the insurance carrier. Valerie Jarrett, Mr. Obama’s senior advisor noted, “Federal officials said that many insurers and employers needed more time to comply because they used separate companies to help administer major medical coverage and drug benefits, with separate limits on out-of-pocket costs. In many cases, the companies have separate computer systems that cannot communicate with one another.” It was surprising to see how a “senior administration official” said that “we had to balance the interests of consumers with the concerns of health plan sponsors and carriers and asked for more time to comply.” There is absolutely no reason that consumers want to have out-of-pocket maximums increased if decisions are being made in their best interest. Again the government is showing they are moving too fast with certain regulations that cannot be enforced. It seems like a delay on the individual mandate (the requirement for all individuals to purchase medical insurance) is the next item up to be postponed. Below is a great video Kaiser has developed to explain Health Care Reform in layman terms. Individuals...
by Ryan | Jun 18, 2013 | Group Benefits, Health Insurance, Individual Benefits, News |
Why use Bedrosian & Associates as your insurance broker and consultant instead of going directly through Kaiser? As an official Kaiser broker, Bedrosian & Associates provides a list of free services and support for you and your employees: We can process all applications, forms and follow up with Kaiser on your behalf. You just send us one email and consider the process complete. We will come out and give a face-to-face employee meeting each year to educate your employees in the Kaiser service. Education leads to more employee appreciation of their benefits. We will review and recommend the most competitive Kaiser plans at the renewal. When possible, we will negotiate rates and try to get your RAF reduced for additional premium savings. If employees are contributing to the Kaiser premium we can run personal rates sheets for them versus HR Administrator having to calculate the rates. We will sign the HR Administrator up for our free HR Library and monthly newsletters to keep you up to date on changes and Health Care Reform. We are here for your employees as an independent 3rd party that your employees can trust and come to with any medical or other insurance needs. Most importantly, Bedrosian & Associates will update you with Health Care Reform and Obamacare information as it becomes available. Once you start working with us you will see it is far easier calling or emailing our office and getting an answer within a minute versus calling an 800 number. The Kaiser bill and rates all remain the same as there is no additional cost for our service. For more information on...
