eHealth Partners with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to Offer Innovative, Affordable Alternatives to Customers During the Affordable…

Managed Care Weekly Digest

eHealth Partners with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to Offer Innovative, Affordable Alternatives to Customers During the Affordable Care Act's 2018 Open Enrollment Period

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Managed Care Weekly Digest -- eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ:EHTH) (eHealth.com) announced that the company has partnered with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to offer new medical insurance packages in 39 states and the District of Columbia for customers who cannot afford major medical plans meeting the benefit standards of the Affordable Care Act (the ACA or Obamacare) (see also Insurance Broker Companies).

In most markets eHealth will offer medical insurance packages with monthly premiums starting below $200 for persons age 35 and under $300 for 50-year-olds. These packages will be available during the ACA's open enrollment period for 2018, which is scheduled to begin November 1, 2017.

In addition to these new packages, eHealth will also offer major medical health insurance plans in 44 states during open enrollment. Obamacare's Affordability Gap According to a recent analysis1, 43 percent of people who buy health insurance in the individual market (7.5 million) don't receive government assistance (advance premium tax credits, commonly referred to as Obamacare subsidies) because they earn more than 400 percent of the federal poverty level.

With premiums expected to rise by more than 20 percent in some markets, eHealth recently published a report examining health insurance costs for families that make too much to receive ACA premium subsidies in 50 U.S. cities and found that a projected 10 percent increase in 2018 would make health insurance unaffordable in 47 of those cities. The ACA defines health insurance as "unaffordable" when the lowest-priced plan available costs more than 8.16 percent of an individual's or family's yearly income (MAGI).

eHealth also analyzed ACA health insurance premiums for individuals that earn too much to receive ACA premium subsidies in 25 U.S. cities and found that by age 45 health insurance would be unaffordable in the majority of those cities if premiums rise 10 percent in 2018. eHealth's Medical Insurance Packages Provide Affordable Alternatives eHealth's medical insurance packages were developed in partnership with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to offer a more affordable alternative to major medical health insurance to people who cannot afford Obamacare.

"We created these packages in response to pleas from our customers," said eHealth CEO Scott Flanders. "Every day, people call our customer care center and ask for help putting together a package of benefits they can actually afford."

"We have a great selection of products they can put together on their own, but that's a cumbersome process - and when they need to use their coverage, coordinating the benefits can be a hassle," Flanders added. "Our new packages are designed to make medical coverage both affordable and easy to use."

These packages will be available in 39 states and the District of Columbia and provide a single point of service when policy holders need to use their benefits. In another 5 states, eHealth will offer medical insurance packages that combine benefits from multiple insurance companies.

Medical insurance packages include varying combinations of insurance and non-insurance products such as short-term medical, supplemental (GAP) medical, and fixed indemnity medical as well as other benefits like telemedicine, prescription drug discounts and medical advocacy services. Specific benefit combinations vary by state.

eHealth will continue to refine the design of these packages to meet varying customer needs and reasonable price points.

Keywords for this news article include: Health Insurance, Medical Insurance, Affordable Care Act, Financial Companies, Insurance Broker Companies.