Open Enrollment for 2015 health insurance has begun! You may be wondering — EXCHANGE or NO EXCHANGE? Should you go through your state’s health insurance exchange (in Virginia, the federal marketplace) or purchase coverage directly from a carrier? The good news is, whichever route you choose, Virginia Medical Plans can help, as we are an authorized broker both on the exchange (in Virginia and DC), and off the exchange for
How to Apply for 2015 Coverage on healthcare.gov
Open Enrollment for 2015 Health Insurance: November 15, 2014 – February 15, 2015. If you live in Virginia and will be eligible for a health insurance subsidy in 2015, you must purchase your coverage on the federal health insurance marketplace — healthcare.gov — in order to receive the subsidy. NEW! This year we are pleased to offer expedited enrollment for Virginia residents on the exchange. You get the same
How do I Calculate My Income to Find Out if I am Eligible for a Health Insurance Subsidy?
Under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), some Americans will be eligible for a subsidy to purchase health insurance through their state’s exchange (or the federal exchange for states like Virginia who have chosen not to run their own exchange). Eligibility for the subsidy is determined in part by household income, relative to the Federal Poverty Level. Click here for details. Some are wondering, however, how to calculate
December 23 Health Insurance Deadline Draws Near
December 23, 2013 is Almost Here It may feel like a race against the clock, but there is still time to enroll in health insurance by the December 23 deadline. Enrolling by that date will ensure you’re covered by January 1, 2014. What Should You do if You Have Not Gotten Health Insurance Yet? First of all, don’t panic! You still have a bit of time! (Note: Maryland residents
Purchasing Health Insurance on the Online Exchange in Virginia, Maryland, DC
UPDATE November, 2014 – The information in this post is from the 2014 Open Enrollment season. Please click here for help with purchasing 2015 health insurance on the Federal Health Insurance Exchange. Here is what you need to know to access the online health insurance exchanges in Virginia, Maryland, and DC. We have also included our broker information which, when entered into your online application, will allow you to benefit
If You Enrolled in Health Insurance Through the Exchange, Will You Really Have Coverage on January 1?
This is a question on the minds of many. With the recent tales of “834 errors*” will insurance carriers really have an accurate record of who is covered under plans sold on the exchange? * 834 is the data transmission form sent from healthcare.gov to the carriers containing a policyholder’s information. The 834’s have been plagued with missing, garbled, or duplicate data, casting doubt on whether carriers will receive correct
Getting Help from a Broker on Healthcare.gov
Remember, the price you pay for health insurance already includes help from a broker! You pay the same price whether you enroll through a broker, a carrier, or directly on healthcare.gov. So, why not take advantage of the help a broker can offer! So that we can assist you in the future with coverage questions, billing issues, or claims concerns, please make sure to add our broker information on the
Another View From the Health Insurance Trenches
It has been about a month since we wrote about our experience “in the trenches” as we help our clients manage the transition to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Many of you are wondering how things are going. Record High Volume at Virginia Medical Plans We, like most brokers across the country, continue to experience a record high volume of calls and emails. As you can imagine, we are doing
National Association of Health Underwriters Helps Brokers Manage Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”)
The impact of the troubled online federal health insurance marketplace — healthcare.gov — has been felt by many Americans trying to manage the transition to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), otherwise known as “Obamacare”. And now we have a numeric representation of the impact — last week the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released enrollment numbers since the opening of the health insurance marketplace on October 1. The
Using the Federal Health Insurance Exchange
Have you tried to sign up for insurance using the Federal Health Insurance Exchange? Since the exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) opened on October 1, the news is filled with reports of delays, glitches, and problems with the online system designed to allow Americans to shop for health insurance. In the two weeks + since the opening of the online exchanges, many Americans have all but given
