Affordable Individual and Family Health Insurance in Alaska

Did you know that 51% of Alaskans get their health insurance through their employer. If you do not get your health insurance through work or you are unemployed, there are generally three options for you; these options include:
1. Private insurance
2. Insurance through High Risk Pools
3. Income eligible state programs

If you want to find affordable individual and family private health insurance, you have come to the right place. Individual health insurance is slightly more expensive than group insurance through your employer, but if you do your homework, you can find a plan that suits you and your family's needs. To do this you need to get a general understanding of the different individual plans. Here is a brief summary of these:

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization)
A PPO is a managed care insurance plan. This type of plan allows you to go in your managed network of doctors for care or out of your network. Generally, reimbursement for services in your network is better (90%) than out of your network (60-70%). PPOs are affordable, flexible and offer a large network of doctors, hospitals and specialists. They tend to have larger co payments and more paperwork than other managed care plans do however.

POS (Point of Service) Plan
A POS is similar to a PPO in that you can choose between in and out of network medical services. Your primary care physician coordinates the care between his/her practice and specialists needed for your treatment. A POS plan pays a percentage of the cost of services, up to a reasonable and customary limit, and you pay the remainder of the balance.

HMO (Health Maintenance Organizations)
A HMO is a managed care organization that tries to reduce health care costs through contracted medical providers. HMOs require co-payments to in network providers and does not pay for out of network providers. You need to have a primary care physician who coordinates and directs your medical care to specialists. Usually preventative care for children and mammograms are free or discounted under a HMO.

HDHP (High Deductible Health Plans)
A HDHP is an insurance plan with higher deductibles and generally lower premiums. Deductibles are your out-of-pocket expenses you must pay first until you reach your deductible limit and then the insurance carrier begins paying for claims. Premiums are the amount of money you pay the insurance company to insure you and your family. HDHP can be coupled with PPOs. Also if you have an eligible HDHP, you can open a Health Savings Account (HSA) that helps you save for the out-of-pocket expenses and gives you many tax saving advantages.

Catastrophic Health Insurance or Major Medical Insurance are high deductible insurance policies designed to protect you financially from catastrophic events such as accidents or serious illness. Once the high deductible is met, the insurance carrier provides coverage for you and helps pay for hospitalization and care.

Alaska Laws on Health Insurance

Alaska has its own laws and regulations concerning the individual health insurance market. Briefly, here are a few of those laws:

1. Once you have an insurance policy, you can not be canceled by your insurance company should you become sick or injured. This is referred to as guaranteed renewable.
2. Certain medical services are required in all individual health plans in Alaska; including: Screening for breast, cervical, prostate and colorectal cancer
   Care for pregnant women
   Care for diabetes-related conditions
   Hearing aids for children
3. There is a program in Alaska called the Denali Kid Care for children under 18 that are at the poverty level. This is an insurance plan for those kids who have no health insurance.
4. There is also a program for adults in Alaska who have specific illnesses and need health insurance. This program is called CAMA for Chronic and Acute Medical Assistance.

Don't be one of the 17% of Alaskans who are uninsured. You can get affordable individual and family health insurance. Start now by comparing the various plans and costs available to you. One of the best ways to compare coverage and rates is to go online and get several quotes. These quotes will be from reputable insurance companies in your communities.