Shopping for the right health insurance is a tiring process that has gotten more confusing with the Affordable Care Act’s requirements. So, if you’re shopping for health insurance, your best bet is to be a cautious, smart shopper. Here are some tips that can help you get started.
Check for A Disclosure
All insurance quote sites must state that they aren’t affiliated with the government. This detail is often in small print at the bottom of the page. So make sure to look at the privacy statement at the bottom, since this will give more info about who owns the website.
Did You Have to Answer Health Questions?
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) doesn’t permit comprehensive health plans from deciding coverage based on your health status. This means that if you had to answer questions about whether you’ve ever been pregnant or whether you smoke, you’re on an insurance quote site where at least a few of the plans are allowed to underwrite ie. deny coverage or charge higher prices for health conditions.
Can You Window-Shop?
Most government insurance marketplace sites allow consumers to compare different plans without submitting any contact info or creating an account.
Did You Need to Give out Your Phone Number?
Healthcare.gov won’t ask for your cell phone number on its homepage. So, if an insurance agent calls to help you sign up for insurance, it is likely a private broker.
Get Good Help
The Healthcare.gov site has a search tool that can help you find brokers that are licensed to sell you comprehensive, ACA-compliant plans and navigators. Navigators are groups that receive federal funding to help with enrollment
Research the Agent
It’s best to search for your broker in an insurance broker registry to see if his/her license is up to date. After checking his/her license, you can then click “appointments” to see which health insurance carriers he or she has relationships with. If none of the options are major medical insurance companies, your agent won’t be selling you comprehensive health insurance.
