Affordable Health Insurance

One of the things that is important to consider when you leave corporate America for the freedom of your own business is affordable health insurance. In fact, the reason most often cited for NOT taking the plunge into self-employment is the lack of cheap health insurance alternatives for people who are not employed by a company that can offer more affordable rates on health insurance through a group health insurance plan.

If you do decide to brave it and be your own boss, there are many places where you can cut corners. Letting yourself or your family go without health insurance isn’t one of them. Here are some common options that can make health insurance affordable if you’re a self-employed entrepreneur or crafter.

Coverage under a Spouse’s Plan

By far the most common option is to cover the family for health insurance through a spouse’s employer. As long as one member of the couple is working for a company that has a group health insurance plan, it’s usually the cheapest option for insuring the entire family.

COBRA

COBRA is an option for the beginning of your self-employment. For the first several months after you leave your job, your employer is required by law to give you the option of retaining membership in their health insurance plan. You will have to cover the entire monthly premium paid by your company rather than the amount that you’re used to paying as an employee when your employer was covering part of the cost. The true cost of that insurance can come as a shock to you – a family health insurance through a group can easily cost close to $1000 a month. It’s still more affordable than most plans that you can purchase as an individual. It’s also only temporary, so you should be looking for other health insurance options while you’re still covered.

A Health Insurance Cooperative with Other Self-employed and Small Business Owners

There are national and local organizations of self-employed workers who have banded together to combine their buying power and get affordable health insurance premiums through group policies. You can find more information about groups in your area through the National Association for the Self Employed (www.nase.org) or the American Association of Home-Based Businesses (www.aahbb.org).

Group Health Insurance for the Self-Employed

In many states like Maine, health insurance companies offer affordable group policies for groups of one. You may have to shop around to find a company that does, but there are benefits other than being a cheaper policy. The most important of these is that they MUST cover everyone in the group, regardless of health conditions. This is important for someone who may have been turned down for an individual health insurance policy because of health.

No matter what, it is vital that you insure yourself and your family against the possibility of illness or accident. There are cheap alternatives to individual health insurance plans for the self-employed.

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The prospects of a comprehensive healthcare reform bill passing are growing slimmer by the day. However, that does not mean that healthcare reform is dead altogether. After their bruising Senate loss in Massachusetts, Democrats are looking to scale back their proposals for reforming the health insurance industry. They are intent on ending this debate with something to show for a year of work. Previously, Democratic senators and representatives were mainly worried about satisfying the conservative, moderate, and liberal wings of the party. Most Republicans made a political calculation to oppose virtually any form of health care reform proposed by the Democrats. Meanwhile, the Democrats decided to go for broke and seek the most comprehensive reform their entire caucus could be convinced to vote for. As it turns out, Democrats clearly overreached. Now, they need to get at least a handful of Republicans on their side in order to pass legislation.

There were some brief flashes of bipartisanship shortly after Obama’s inaguration, but both parties quickly took sides. Republican Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine initially expressed some degree of support for healthcare reform. She was largely concerned with controlling costs, but so were centrist Democratic senators. In fact, she even supported the idea of a government-run health insurance public option under very limited circumstances–an idea that never gained traction among the entire Democratic caucus in the Senate. Snowe wanted to give the individual health insurance exchange markets, subsidies, and regulations time to work before resorting to further federal interventions. If the private health insurance companies were unable to cover a sufficient percentage of Americans, the public option would be “triggered”.

Over the past several months, increased partisan rancor appeared to have soured Snowe on the issue. Democrats shut her and fellow Republicans out of negotiations, while conservative “tea party” activists were running primary challenges against any legislator deemed insufficiently strong in their opposition to healthcare reform. Granted, there may have been concern that their involvement in committees reconciling the House of Representatives’ and Senate’s bills would not be in good faith–only one Republican in the entire Congress (Louisiana Rep. Joseph Cao) voted in favor. However, the process just managed to alienate potentially amenable legislators like Snowe.

With the election of Scott Brown changing the balance of the Senate, President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and other Democratic leaders are acknowledging the need to slow down and cut the bill back to its most important, easily understandable elements. For her part, Snowe is waiting for Democrats to make the first move, to amend the bridges burned by the closed-door negotiations. Brown has also expressed his willingness to play a constructive role in reforming America’s current health insurance system. Other moderate Republicans, including Maine’s Susan Collins, may follow suit in crafting a new, more limited bill.

2008 Republican presidential candidate and Arizona Senator John McCain is also open to starting over. He has suggested that some elements of his election year healthcare proposal–such as allowing people to buy individual health insurance across state lines, tax credits for those buying individual or self employed health insurance, and medical malpractice tort reform–be considered. Similar ideas have also been touted by Snowe, as those with the potential of receiving bipartisan support. More gradual changes may also garner greater popularity among the general public than a substantial overhaul. In general, many politicians believe that the current bill is most likely unsalvageable; there is too much bad blood associated with its process.

(Image: Olympia Snowe’s official Senate website)

Yamileth Medina is an up and coming expert on Health Insurance and Healthcare Reform. She aims to help people realize that they can find quality individual health insurance right now. Yamileth lives in Miami, FL.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/insurance-articles/some-republicans-show-willingness-to-compromise-on-healthcare-reform-1783675.html

Small business forms the backbone of our economy. It is rather interesting then to realize what a raw deal small business gets. A classic example is the brutally difficult time a self-employed person with a pre-existing condition has trying to get health insurance. If you are lucky, some states have a concept known as a group of one that can help.

Health insurance companies are in business to make money. People seem to forget this. I am not standing up for these companies. They do some pretty brutal things in my opinion, but people need to remember they are businesses. As businesses, they don’t want to ensure someone they know is going to cost them a bundle. No business wants a customer like that. Self-employed individuals with pre-existing conditions are, unfortunately, just that.

The “group of one” health insurance option is a real winner. It is based on the idea that a person cannot be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition under a group policy. For instance, a person with a heart condition who works for Google cannot be denied coverage under their plan. In states that allow it, you can actually purchase group plans for your self-employed business and then join your own group. It sounds strange, but it works.

Are there any downsides to this strategy? Yes, there are a few. First, the group of one concept is so despised by insurance companies that a law has to be passed before they will submit to it. So far, only 12 states have it – Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Vermont. If you live in another state, the group of one strategy cannot be used.

The second problem is the timing of coverage. While the 12 states above will allow the group of one concept, the coverage can be limited at first. A not uncommon regulation is the insurance company can avoid coverage on the pre-existing condition for the first six months of the policy. For individuals with ongoing health problems, this is a huge problem.

Is group of one health insurance the answer for individuals seeking health insurance with pre-existing conditions? Yes, if you live in one of the 12 golden states that allow it.

Mark P. Warner is with BestPlaceToBuyHealthInsurance.com – where you can located the best place to buy health insurance on the web and information to make sure you get the best deal.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/insurance-articles/the-concept-of-group-of-one-health-insurance-1757554.html