California Insurance

Posts related to health and life insurance in California, Covered California, rates, subsidies, short term medical and travel plans.

Prohibit Cross Selling Insurance with Covered California Health Plans

August 6, 2013 By Kevin Knauss 4 Comments

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will be driving millions of people to either get health insurance or look at switching plans. The net result is a huge new marketing opportunity for insurance agents to sell not only health insurance, but far more lucrative insurance for life, disability, long term care, indemnity, auto and home or financial services. However, insurance agents should be prohibited from cross selling any non-health related insurance products during the initial meeting with prospects for the new ACA health plans.

Insurance Agents Embrace Obamacare For Money

August 3, 2013 By Kevin Knauss 7 Comments

Many insurance agents who sell health plans and have vehemently opposed the Affordable Care Act have gone through the classic stages of grief over its passage: denial, anger, depression, bargaining and finally, acceptance. While some in the industry still hold out hope that the fortieth plus attempt to repeal the ACA will be a charm, most have accepted the new law and are looking ways to adapt and profit from its provisions.

New Covered California Small Business Plans Look Competitive

August 1, 2013 By Kevin Knauss Leave a Comment

Covered California released their small business health option plans (SHOP) for small employers and they might prove competitive for some companies with less than 50 employees. There will absolutely be small businesses that will not participate because they don’t want to support any government bureaucracy, even if it is to their benefit.

Children’s Dental Insurance added to Covered California

June 25, 2013 By Kevin Knauss 4 Comments

Children’s dental insurance options have now been added to the line of plans being offered through California’s health insurance exchange Covered California. Part of the ten Essential Health Benefits that must be offered through the new health insurance exchanges or Marketplaces is pediatric dental. The state exchanges can meet this requirement in various ways and Covered California has opted to offer stand alone plans.

Emergency Regulations Ensures Competitive Health Insurance Market in California

June 17, 2013 By Kevin Knauss Leave a Comment

The emergency regulations force all “non-grandfathered” plans to include the 10 EHBs which means that plans offered through Covered California won’t be put at a substantial competitive disadvantage. Plans not offering all the benefits would have been priced lower than plans in the state exchange. While health insurance plans offered outside the Covered California may still be less expensive for a variety of reasons, at least they will have equivalent benefit designs.

Assister Enrollment Entity Website for Covered California

June 10, 2013 By Kevin Knauss Leave a Comment

Before Covered California can really get the IPA training going, they have to have the Assister Enrollment Entities (AEE) in place. The AEEs can be a variety of organizations that have the interest and resources to reach out to targeted populations to help enroll individuals into Covered California health plans. These might be nonprofit groups that serve specific ethnic or cultural populations, social service organizations or trade groups.

Report cards for Covered California health plans

June 5, 2013 By Kevin Knauss Leave a Comment

Covered California will be offering 13 different health insurance plans to individuals and families. Some of the plans will be offered through large commercial insurance companies and other from smaller regional organizations. Ten of the thirteen plans have some form of easily accessible report card on their services from either a state agency or accreditation organization.

Health insurance agents get a hug from Covered California

May 24, 2013 By Kevin Knauss 4 Comments

Ironically, many of the agents listening and asking questions have undoubtedly been ardent opponents of health care reform and many have actively called for the repeal of Obamacare. But here they were, listening to hear if they could make a dime off the tax-payer subsidized, guarantee issue health insurance plans that many have called the end of America and the beginning of socialism.