Broker:
--"I'm living in WA now, and went through NASRO to get mine. They have
CA coverage too: http://www.nasro-co-op.com/health/state/ca/index.shtml.I hope this helps!"
--Hi! I used Margo Lampell 415 929 1585; lampell@msn.com; www.mlampell.com. She's a broker who represents all kinds of plans. She's nice and thoughtful and can easily help you pinpoint a plan that's best for you. She helped me individually, and then with a company I was involved in starting.
--"I can also recommend an insurance broker: Clark Kelly 650-369-8794
who helped my wife & me with navigating the insurance application process."
Kaiser:
--overall, i've been happy with the customer service and medical care i've received from kaiser. (although my opinion may be biased since i work for them). but no really, i've been pretty satisfied with them; for being a large organization, i was pretty surprised at how helpful the RN's, doctors, and staff have been when i've gone in for appointments. i'm not sure what the individual coverage costs are compared with other carriers, ... but kaiser's got those cool ads.
--"I have Kaiser Permanente, and I think they're great. You can call and ask
for advice from a nurse (with my PPO with Blue Cross they would never give
you advice over the phone) and making appointments is super easy. I called
them once at 6:30pm, and they saw me 7:15pm! Also, I would look into the (Health Savings Account) HSA plans. It's tax deferred account and the money is yours to invest in the mean time!"
"I received something from Kaiser-Permanente a few weeks ago advertising
some program for the self-imployed. I didn't look it over (since I'm
covered by Stanford) but you might want to look into it. They're one of
the highest rated HMOs in the country (non-profit unlike most)."
--"I've used Kaiser ever since I was fresh out of undergrad 16 years ago, and I
was a freelancer for many years."
Blue Cross:
--"None of them are great, but I've had Blue Cross for years. They seem to be
decent for individuals."
always been a fan of blue cross of CA
--I have TONIK from blue cross which seems pretty good (so far)...It is about $130/mo and has some dental and most major items.
--"I'm 50, self-employed graphic designer, and have insurance with Blue
Shield, which I'm not at all sure is my best deal. I don't know your circumstances, but I would strongly recommend you look into an HSA account and insurance policy. There is a lot of info
available on the web about HSA's but briefly, it's a two part system:
1. you get an HSA policy from your health insurance provider, which will
have a deductible around $ 2,500
2. you set up an HSA account with a bank, which you contribute into, up
to your deductible amount each year. I set my HSA up with Stanford Federal Credit Union (which is a great
place for accounts--I'm using it for biz, personal, mortgage, HELOC,
credit card, etc.)
The HSA works like an IRA, the money you put in is sheltered from income
taxes, and can stay in your account, earning interest, until you retire.
You don't have to spend it, and you keep what you don't spend. You can
also use it to pay medical expenses: whatever costs are part of your
deductible, AND dental, eye care & glasses, prescriptions, that may not
be any part of your health insurance policy. The beauty is that ALL that
money you pay out from the HSA is tax sheltered."
Gradmed:
--this is what i used when i was between jobs:http://www.gradmed.com/av3/index.asp
Health Net:
--I have individual heath insurance through Heath Net. (I pay about $150 a
month.) They have a variety of plans so you can weigh the amount of the
deductible vs the monthly fee--which is great for someone who is young and
healthy and mostly needs insurance for emergencies.
One tip though--don't let your current coverage lapse before getting a new plan. It's harder to get individual insurance if there is a gap in coverage...
Palo Alto Medical Foundation:
--If you are living in the Palo Alto area, my friend loves Palo Alto Medical
Foundation.
+1 for Kaiser.
I had to switch to Blue Cross when I changed jobs recently, and every time I interact with Blue Cross I feel like I've gone back in time (in a bad way, not in the "bedside visits" way) about 100 years.
Andrew Martinez-Fonts
______________________
We're using Aetna, but I can't say that I'm willing to recommend... looking to move to something else. Let me know if you find anything good.... I will do likewise.
Andreas M. Kogelnik
______________________
Stanford has a decent stop-gap measure called Grad Med (at least they did until last year). It allows you to be part of the Stanford Alumni group and get up to 6 months of coverage if you find yourself between health plans. It's mostly for emergency coverage, and thankfully I didn't have to use it, so I don't know how good they are if you actually get into trouble.
Anne Fletcher
______________________
Kaiser Rocks.
Daylight was initially set up with Blue Shield but we transitioned over to Kaiser about two years ago and we have been very satisfied with them.
- Strong focus on preventative care
- Highly integrated HMO
- Motivated and skilled doctors
- Simple and predictable billing
Brett Newman
______________________
I worked with grad students (Exex MBA) doing on a project at Kaiser using design thinking. Sorry I can't talk about specifics, but I can say that the mid-level managers seem properly incentivized and driven to improve service. They are far from a design thinking driven firm, because they are simply a huge firm, but there are a couple pockets of it in high places, I think.
The service from Anthem is appalling. The utter lack of transparency in their documents is my pet grievance. Inexcusable.
THANKS for the HSA info, btw! That's cool! Healthcare is a huge, ugly puzzle, and you have to attack it in it's present form piece by piece. Here's another bit:
I will also mention Health Care Reimbursement Accounts, HCRA, something distinct from HSA, I believe. You may be able to do both. CONSULT A TAX PERSON ABOUT THIS! These are handled by third parties, usually for very small admin. fees. You get a pretax deduction from your paycheck each month, and this is spendable on allowed expenses, sometimes in advance. The catch is if you don't spend the money, you lose it. It is still a good deal, because it lowers your pretax income, and allows you to spend pretax dollars on med. expenses. I try to do it every year. I have missed the deadline twice, argh, but think it is still worth it. It is especially good if you know you will have unreimbursed medicalmexpenses in a given year. Copays, deductibles (I think) and R/Xs are all allowed. It has been years since I have had one of these plans in a small firm, but I know it is possible--there are providers that specialize in this type of account for small biz.
Bruce Heiman
______________________
I used a local broker recently as well and was happy with him. He was helpful with advising a number of options and explaining various things.
bradley j. vaccaro, president
allpointe insurance services
http://allpointe-is.com/contact/
Vaccaro Bradley <brad@allpointe-is.com>
Chris Miksovsky
______________________
I was also fed up with Blue Shield, and just by circumstance was switched over to Aetna. They're even worse. Do not use them. And do not under any circumstances talk to Liberty Mutual. They are the devil.
______________________
Here's a set of suggestions:
1. My wife & I are separately self-employed. I have Blue Shield, and am putting up with it for now. She has Healthnet, and it seems good, and affordable for her. We are both in our 50's.
I would strongly recommend you look into an HSA account and insurance policy. There is a lot of info available on the web about HSA's but briefly, it's a two part system:
one: you get an HSA policy from your health insurance provider, which will have a high deductible.
two: you set up an HSA account with a bank, which you contribute into, up to $3,050 (I think) each year.
I set up my HSA with Stanford Federal Credit Union (which is a great place for accounts--I'm using it for biz, personal, mortgage, HELOC, credit card, etc.)
The HSA works like an IRA, the money you put in is sheltered from income taxes, and can stay in your account, earning interest, until you retire. You don't have to spend it, and you keep what you don't spend. You can also use it to pay medical expenses: whatever costs are part of your deductible, AND dental, eye care & glasses, prescriptions, that may not be any part of your health insurance policy. The beauty is that ALL that money you pay out from the HSA is tax sheltered. And right now, I'm getting a decent interest rate on our HSA accounts.
3. I can also recommend an insurance broker: Clark Kelly 650-369-8794 <clark@proinsurance.com>
who helped us both with navigating the insurance application process.
David Lehmann
______________________
they all suck. but, we have been reasonably happy with united healthcare. our broker has been helpful too. contact info here:
Gina Day | Group Health Benefit Advisor |CA Lic. #0D29841 | Assured Health Insurance Service | Phone 916.966.1254 ext. 106 | *New - Direct Fax 916.872.8278 | Taking the right steps to help you meet you benefit needs.
good luck,
fred bould
______________________
You probably already know this, but just in case: As stanford alumnae you can open HSA accounts at Stanford Federal Credit Union, and then get an HSA policy from an insurer to match. When I opened mine the interest rate on the HSA account was a tax-free 5% too, though that might have changed. The HSA plans tend to be kinda minimal, but they are also pretty cheap, and cover you in the event you have larger expenses.
Grant Cutler
______________________
I am self-employed with a Kaiser individual plan right now. They are
great in some ways and not-so-good in other ways. I was very impressed
by their maternity offerings, but disappointed when I called for
advice recently. The advice nurse was referencing "What to Expect in
the First Year" in order to answer my questions and suggested that I
get a copy for myself.
Jean Hsu
______________________
For self-employed designers -
The Organization of Women Architects offers group health insurance (Healthnet) to its members - you don't have to be an architect (or, for that matter, a woman!) to join. I know a few freelancers who joined just to get health insurance, and one of them has had major medical bills (complicated pregnancy) and still sings their praises. (this might be California-only)
http://owa-usa.org/healthplan.php
q julia svihra
______________________
Yes the HSA plan is the best part of our Blue Cross plan.
Louis Hsiao
______________________
In New York, Freelancers Union offers insurance products among other good stuff. Check to see if they operate where you are.
In California, I recommend Margo Lampell--a broker who can figure out what insurance and what product is best for you or your organization. They have tools on their site but you can also just talk; they know this stuff cold.
M&M Lampell (Marc and Margo)
(415) 883-8043
www.mlampell.com
Nora McCauley
______________________
IDEO just switched from Anthem Blue Cross to UnitedHealthcare
Peter Macdonald
______________________
We have aetna HMO (mid-range) ... It is good, they pay for everything at PAMF.
Polina Levitan
______________________
www.nase.org
Rob Dennis
______________________
I pay for Kaiser as am individual member. It is about $400/month (I'm in my early thirties) which I consider expensive but I have the lowest deductible plan and my care has been fabulous. Hope that helps!
stacy sanders
______________________
I am fed up with Anthem/BlueCross. We used a broker as well. We are planning to switch to Kaiser.
Ross Evans
_____________________
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