How much is it for individual health insurance?

Answer 1

A personal health insurance policy, sometimes called an "individual" or "family" health insurance policy, covers you and your designated family members. You purchase a personal health policy through a licensed health insurance agent who is appointed to represent the insurance carriers in your state.

Personal health policies are the fastest growing form of U.S. health insurance.

The price of a personal health policy is based on your age and your health at the time of application-but once insured, your premium cannot be increased because you become ill.

Once you obtain a personal health insurance policy, in virtually all states:

You and your covered family members are guaranteed the right to renew your personal policy until age 65, independent of employment.

Your renewal premium may not be substantially increased due to your claims experience-even if your carrier pays a claim for you of $1 million or more.

Your renewal premium will increase when you enter a higher age band (typically every 5 years) or with general medical inflation-based on the claims of a very large group of people in your state who purchased similar personal policies.

Some states set limits on annual increases regardless of medical inflation. Depending on your state, you should expect your premium to increase 5% to 15% each year from an initial price much lower than group coverage. See your local licensed agent for detailed information on your state.

If you are healthy and don't like your proposed annual renewal premium, you can always shop around for a new policy just like you do with auto or homeowners insurance. Nationally, more than 300 different carriers, including 76 Blue Cross Blue Shield companies, offer personal polices.

In contrast, with an employer group policy:

You lose coverage if you retire before age 65 (Medicare), or become ill and cannot work, or are needed at home to take care of a sick child or spouse.

If you have more than 50-100 employees, the group renewal premium is increased each year based on the claims of your group-your individual share of this group premium could double even if you never file a single claim.

In some states, if your company has less than 100 employees, your entire group could become unaffordable, if just one person filed a major claim.

Your employer selects your coverage, doctor network, and annual deductible and there are little or no financial incentives to reward having a healthy lifestyle.