Open enrollment can be VERY confusing… When is it? How does it work? Why is it so hard to understand? Have you been thinking about the 2019 healthcare open enrollment – yet not sure how to proceed? Below, we have a guide that’ll walk you through the complexities of health insurance and share exactly what you need to know to get the best health insurance for you and your family. What Is Open Enrollment? Open enrollment is a period of time annually when you can sign up for health insurance.  Individuals are able to enroll in Off- Exchange plans (no subsidy) any time of the year with a 90 days wait.  So, Open Enrollment is the time to enroll on On- Exchange with a subsidy or Off – Exchange Plans without a waiting period for 01/01/20. If you don’t apply for health insurance during the open enrollment, then it’s highly likely that can’t sign up until the next open enrollment period, unless you experience a qualifying event. There’s another way around this – Outside of Open Enrollment you may still apply for health insurance but you may have a 90 day wait unless you experience a qualifying event.  So you need to make sure that you do NOT miss the deadline. Don’t let pre-existing conditions hold you back from applying – you may enroll during open enrollment regardless of pre-existing issues.  ObamaCare Facts – How Does Open Enrollment Work? With Open Enrollment for ObamaCare, anybody is qualified for health insurance coverage. Some important things to keep in mind: Health insurance plans through your job may have different Open Enrollment windows, so check with your employer for dates. You can qualify and enroll in Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) any time during the year. Open Enrollment Dates – …

You missed open enrollment. Or maybe your health insurance lapsed for some reason.   What are you supposed to do? Is it even possible to get health insurance outside of open enrollment? Yes, it is possible to get health insurance outside of open enrollment. This guide shares the 3 possible ways to get health insurance outside of open enrollment. 1. If you’ve had a “qualifying life event” within the last 60 days The government understands that sometimes life just happens. And when life happens, circumstances change, or situations adapt, then you should have the opportunity to get health insurance. There is a list of “qualifying life events” that will make you eligible to receive health insurance outside of open enrollment. What are the “qualifying life events?” There is a list of “qualifying life events” that will make you eligible to receive health insurance outside of open enrollment. Here’s the list of qualifying life events: Changes in your household situation: You get married or divorce You have a child or adopt a child There’s a death in the household Changes in your living situation: You move zip codes (it doesn’t necessarily have to be across state lines) A student moving to or from school that’s located in a different area Moving from transitional housing Losing your health insurance coverage Losing your health insurance because you quit your job or got terminated Losing your eligibility to have Medicaid or Medicare Losing health insurance under your parents’ plan once you turn 26 years old Forgetting to pay, or being unable to pay, your current health insurance to the point where it lapses is NOT a qualifying life event If you lose short term coverage then that is NOT a qualifying life event Other miscellaneous life events Becoming a US Citizen Leaving incarceration And …

As you may recall, in September 2017, Equifax announced that it experienced one of the largest data breaches in history, exposing the personal information of approximately 147 million people.  On Monday, a proposed settlement was announced to provide benefits to those impacted by the breach.  If your personal information was exposed, you may be entitled to free credit monitoring or cash payments to compensate you for the cost of credit monitoring services, out-of-pocket losses, or time spent resolving identity theft or other misuse of data obtained by the breach, and free identity restoration services. To find out if you were impacted by the data breach and eligible for benefits from the settlement, visit https://eligibility.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/en/eligibility.  You will also be able to submit a claim through the website. More information about the data breach and proposed settlement is available through the FTC’s website at https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-proceedings/refunds/equifax-data-breach-settlement. At Nevada Benefits, we feel strongly about the importance of safeguarding and monitoring your personal credit information, which is why we continue to recommend clients keep a credit freeze in place and review their credit report on an annual basis.

The Basics of Selecting Group Health Insurance: Small Businesses Edition A business is only as strong as all of its employees. That is why small business owner should use these four tips when selecting appropriate group health insurance: Don’t settle for less Everyone wants to get the deal, the best “bang for their buck” or the largest discount available. When purchasing group health insurance, small business owners will want to play conservative and lean towards inexpensive plans. However, choosing any product solely on low cost may not be in the buyer’s best interest from a quality and customer service standpoint. Small business owners must take into account factors beyond price when selecting group health insurance for all of their employees. Cover all your bases Most individuals will not boast about their medical bills with joy. For this reason, a business owner must consider their employees and their needs. The type of plan and monthly premium to deductible ratio are vital components. Choosing between an HMO, PPO, or EPO can impact the savings of a company’s employees when dealing with medical expenses. Another deciding factor is the age-old debate of higher premium/lower deductible vs lower premium/higher deductible debate. Identifying the right plan can be the difference between spending minimal cash to maintain health or completely crushing a family’s monthly budget. Don’t just accept the terms and conditions, read them! Like any contract, there will be fine print and group insurance is no exception. Some insurance providers install cap limits on types of insurances they cover and some carriers will exclude specific conditions like maternity, etc. Small business owner want to ensure that all text be reviewed before finalizing the deal. Fully reviewing the overlooked details can also be of incredibly importance for a company if their employees live in various states …

I thought “robo call” season was over with the election for now! Welcome to open enrollment “robo call” season! We’ve personally received several calls and opted-in to hear what they’re offering. Be aware and cautious! We heard several “stretches of the truth,” to put it nicely. They tried selling us a plan through an “association” with a $100 fee attached, the plans didn’t comply with the Health Care Reform, had limited benefits, and when we asked to check out there website and email us details they said they didn’t have a website and wouldn’t email us quotes until we actually bought the insurance. Not a way to do business. We searched the internet for these “insurance agents” and found that they had 1000’s of complaints, multiple lawsuits, and even the Attorney General, in a handful of states, has gotten involved. Here’s how the call went down: The man on the line said he was calling from the “National Health Enrollment Center” and he wanted us to buy a short-term health plan, available from up to 37 different insurance companies for “around” $300 per month. A “Cadillac Plan” he called it, because it was “just so good.” What he was actually offering as our broker dug deeper and persistently asked questions was a bridge plan, with month-to month coverage. Our broker then asked for something in writing to overlook via email before he signed up, with an exact amount and what he was paying for. “Obamacare prohibits me from sending you anything in writing,” he stated. This is untrue. If an agent refuses to send you information or carefully go over a plan and make sure you understand exactly what you are getting, run. “Well, what about a website so I can look at it online?” The “agent” on the phone …