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Kevin Knauss: Health, History, Travel, Insurance

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Out of Network Lab Costs Can Be Expensive

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In the case of this specialty genetic laboratory test, the lab billed $8,000 for the test. The health plan determined that the Allowable Amount was $3,000 for the test. The health plan paid 50% of the allowable amount in the form of a check to the plan member. Oddly, the Evidence of Billing indicated that none of the $8,000 claim was covered, even though they sent a check to the plan member for 50% cost-sharing for the test. Regardless, the plan member is still responsible for full $8,000 to the lab for the test.

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Searching For Cheaper Health Insurance Rates Outside Of Covered California

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Health insurance companies are smarter than your average house cat. They have reams of data about health care claims and demographics. They can forecast, with reasonable confidence, that altering some of the member cost-sharing benefits may reduce their final exposure to pay member claims. It has also been suggested that consumers who purchase health insurance off-exchange, paying the full premium rate with no subsidy, may be more judicious in how they use health care services. In other word, off-exchange consumer mays tend to file fewer health care expense claims. This results in lower rates to the consumer.

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Covered California Subsidy Absent Without Dependent Designation, Aid Code X7

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The Covered California agent service representative said I was about the fifth agent he worked with to identify the missing dependent tax status question. He could see the question in his system, but I couldn’t see the question on my client application. When he indicated that Debbie was to be claimed as a dependent of Susan, the APTC monthly subsidy was awarded.

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Cut Your Health Insurance Premiums By Splitting Up Family Members

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Families don’t all have to be with the same carrier either. Some parents have chosen a PPO plan for their children because certain doctors who are treating their children are in-network with the PPO plan. The parents then choose a less expensive HMO plan for themselves. It could be that a family member needs surgery during the next year. That person might opt for a Gold or Platinum plan to reduce out-of-pocket expenses while the other family members hang out in the Bronze or Silver metal tier level.

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Terminating Covered California For 2018 Can Be Tricky

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If you try to terminate the 2018 enrollment, you will get an error code if date you are specifying is in December or earlier. This is because you can’t terminate an enrollment that has not started. If you try and change the effective date, while the enrollment year is still listed as 2018, you will be told the termination date will be 1/31/2018. If you follow through with the termination, you will be enrolled for the month of January for a plan you don’t want.

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Print A List, Check It Twice For Your Health Insurance Doctors

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Because of all of the numerous ways a provide network search can give incorrect results, I am now recommending that people print out a list of providers in their area. Usually the list can be created in a PDF format that is searchable with Adobe Acrobat Reader. You can look through the list of doctor names alphabetically. You might see Dr. Balabat and realize that is your doctor when you thought the name was spelled Baladat.

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Foreign Travel Coverage With California Health Insurance

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But once you cross the border, some plans can be a little coy in whether they will cover any health care services. For both travel in the United States and abroad, you really need to study the health plan’s member agreement also referred to the Evidence of Coverage (EOC). The EOCs are those big documents that tell you have the plan works, what’s included, and what’s excluded. Some EOCs are specific about foreign travel coverage while others that I have studied make no mention of coverage outside the U.S.

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Should Older Individuals Go Medi-Cal To Beat High Cost Of Health Insurance?

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Finally, some folks are considering just enrolling in Medi-Cal because they are eligible. They have very little or no income to report on their taxes because they are living off of savings, interest, and dividends. Here again, Medi-Cal would be used as a containment strategy to an unexpected accident or illness. Medi-Cal is typically a HMO plan which requires a Primary Care Physician to make referrals to specialists, order tests, or imaging.

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California PPO Plans Come With High Deductibles, Max Out of Pocket Amounts

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The health plans don’t recognize the invoiced amount of the health care services from out-of-network providers as either accruing toward the deductible or for their cost-sharing of 50% before the maximum out-of-pocket amount is met. The health plans apply a Usual and Customary Rate (UCR) or the Allowable Amount. This limits their responsibility for payment and increases the health plan members costs.

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Commissions Cut Again For Covered California Health Insurance Agents

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The health plans and Covered California may give lip service to the value of the agent community, but it is not reflected in the compensation we receive. I’m not trying to get rich as an insurance agent. My net revenue listed on my Schedule C for 2016 was $34,000. If the new compensation schedules significantly erode my insurance revenue then I will have to find other income streams. Maybe Covered California will hire me to answer phone calls; I hear they have a great benefits package.

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