Chicago area and the ACA / Obamacare plans (Oak Lawn: how much, purchase)

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by sfcambridge

Tedious is the word. This will be my 4th insurance change in 3 years.

Thanks for the info about the change in the Harken network. I was worried about that. Did they mention if RUSH will also leave the network? If there was at least ONE of the big hospitals, it might work. I'll wait for their new network to go up online. And I'm scared to see what the monthly premium might be......

It's crazy..... more and more of us are losing the security of getting health insurance through employers, as more of us are working without benefits/contractors/part time/work for ourselves etc... And now the options are becoming fewer and fewer, and more and more expensive.

I hope those of you with insurance through your work realize how lucky you are.

I also wonder if your current schedule might allow for a part-time position with a large organization ( hospital, etc) that would provide decent insurance benefits, even if you'll pay more for those benefits than a full-time employee would..

I guess another alternative might be a catastrophic insurance plan, with very high deductables. that would cover you in the most extreme cases ( MVA victim, long-term hospitalization, severe illness, etc), but will leave you holding the bag for routine stuff..

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by sfcambridge

Tedious is the word. This will be my 4th insurance change in 3 years.

Thanks for the info about the change in the Harken network. I was worried about that. Did they mention if RUSH will also leave the network? If there was at least ONE of the big hospitals, it might work. I'll wait for their new network to go up online. And I'm scared to see what the monthly premium might be......

It's crazy..... more and more of us are losing the security of getting health insurance through employers, as more of us are working without benefits/contractors/part time/work for ourselves etc... And now the options are becoming fewer and fewer, and more and more expensive.

I hope those of you with insurance through your work realize how lucky you are.

What about the other option?

Obamacare Increasing Medicaid Participation Rates, One of Crowning Achievements | Ramirez Group

[Tenzo]

No No no.

You are all wrong.
I distinctly heard him say that "if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. PERIOD."

So you all must be confused.

[Careless]

Originally Posted by MassVt

I wonder if other hospitals ( the Catholic Resurrection medical centers, Advocate Lutheran, Evanston Hospital, etc) will still be options for you. Individual plans can be expensive, since you're paying the entire premium yourself, but I wonder if there are other HMO options that might still be palatable, even if their referral network doesn't include Rush, U of C or Northwestern. ..

Evanston Hospital is UC, Northshore University Health. I'm looking at what these plans cover, and from where I sit, the closest... 6, maybe? hospitals are all out of network if you're on the big ACA plans. Ouch. And they're getting another 50% price increase. Definitely death spiral territory.

[sfcambridge]

Originally Posted by chet everett

What about the other option?

Obamacare Increasing Medicaid Participation Rates, One of Crowning Achievements | Ramirez Group

This thread is about choosing an insurance plan on the ACA Marketplace - not Medicaid.

[Gemini1963]

To answer various questions, in case it helps:

I am not sure about Rush staying in Harken's network in 2017 (they did not say anything about this on the phone and so far, we have not checked this out), but my guess would be no.

My understanding is that Advocate will stay in Harken's network in 2017, but (of course) verify this for yourselves. (For us, this is the one ray of light in the mess, since our primary care doctors have privileges at Advocate, and we are close to Advocate Christ Medical in Oak Lawn.)

And we already have high deductible plans.

[sfcambridge]

Originally Posted by Gemini1963

To answer various questions, in case it helps:

I am not sure about Rush staying in Harken's network in 2017 (they did not say anything about this on the phone and so far, we have not checked this out), but my guess would be no.

My understanding is that Advocate will stay in Harken's network in 2017, but (of course) verify this for yourselves. (For us, this is the one ray of light in the mess, since our primary care doctors have privileges at Advocate, and we are close to Advocate Christ Medical in Oak Lawn.)

And we already have high deductible plans.

Thanks again. It does help.

[flamadiddle]

Originally Posted by Tenzo

No No no.

You are all wrong.
I distinctly heard him say that "if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. PERIOD."

So you all must be confused.

Yep, Obama would be a good used car salesman.

And don't forget this little gem... America was duped!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV-05TLiiLU

[sfcambridge]

So it's that time of year again - open enrollment.

Anyone with good things to say about their plan? Are you able to keep it for 2017?

If you have lost your plan this year (Land of Lincoln, Harken Health folks), what are you choosing for 2017?

Have you found a plan that includes one of the big Chicago hospitals (Northwestern, RUSH, University of Chicago)?


After losing both Land of Lincoln, and Harken Health this year, I was considering leaving the marketplace and buying outside of it in case this would be more stable. While Harken Health is leaving the Marketplace they will be offering individual plans. I checked their website offerings, and the closest similar plan to my current one would jump $100 higher in premium per month and has none of my doctors. It looks like the big hospitals are also out of network.

Oh well.

[Gemini1963]

We are still researching but it's looking bad (even on a high deductible) if we want the large hospitals in network. Right now our (very) tentative plan is to go with the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan that is linked to Advocate, since we are near an Advocate hospital and our primary care physicians are linked to Advocate. But it's very discouraging.