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Affordable health insurance
The health insurance exchange makes it easy to find affordable high quality coverage available in your home state.
low cost health insurance
personal enrollment support

Personal professional enrollment support is available for all of the benefit plans listed on this page. Send your question by e-mail for fast OnlineAdviser response. Limited telephone support (800) 609-0683. Office hours posted daily on Twitter @FreedomBenefits


 

Most Liberal Eligibility

Basic Health Insurance - the least expensive plan in the exchange with the lowest level health benefits
Core Health Insurance - the nation's most popular defined benefit health plans with guaranteed acceptance from US Fire Insurance Company
Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan - a temporary state-sponsored plan available to citizens/residents who have  been uninsured for more than 6 months due to a pre-existing medical condition.
Value 24 Hour Accident - up to $10,000 of supplemental health insurance coverage for emergency treatment of injuries at a cost of about $2 per day. Can be used as a stand-alone coverage or added to other insurance.
Value Emergency Room - add $1,000 additional emergency room coverage for $1 per day for the whole family

Most Affordable

Basic Health Insurance - the least expensive plan in the exchange with the lowest level health benefits
Secure Lite STM - the lowest priced major medical insurance for 1 to 12 months
Secure Saver STM - $2 million maximum coverage for 1-12 months at an ultra-low rate
Value Med Insurance - 3 question simple medical eligibility and immediate approval for supplemental doctor and hospital benefits

Long Term Major Medical

Celticare - well-known renewable individual major medical insurance for discriminating healthy applicants
Celtic Basic Health Insurance - a trim version of Celticare at a lower price
UnitedHealthcare - Golden Rule Insurance, a member of America's largest health plan

Dental Insurance

Secure DentalOne - one lifetime deductible of $100 and then up to $1,250 per year coverage

Online Life Insurance

Great Start Child Life Insurance - inexpensive permanent insurance that can be gifted by parents and grandparents
Guarantee Trust term life Insurance
- fast, easy and inexpensive online term insurance coverage up to $250,000
International Term Life - up to $2 million coverage issued by Lloyds online specifically for those who spend time outside of the US
Simple whole life insurance
- the fastest way to get affordable permanent coverage up to $50,000. Online underwriting, no exam.
Smart term life insurance - up to $500,000 coverage directly online without an exam or blood test
QuoteIntelligence Term life insurance
- find the lowest rates, compare features & eligibility requirements and then apply online with the best insurance companies in less than 30 seconds.

low cost health insurance

Pennsylvania health insurance exchange

Pennsylvania has more than 100 commercial health insurance companies that offer individual health insurance as well as state-sponsored welfare plan run by Independence Blue Cross that provides guaranteed issue coverage to low income residents. The standard health insurance plans may not be suitable or affordable to all residents. This Web page lists some of the most popular low cost commercial health insurance plans and related benefits. All of these policies offer secure online enrollment and professional OnlineAdviser personal enrollment support. Please note that while many of these choices could be included in more than one of the suggested usage categories, each plan is listed only once for the sake of brevity. Your enrollment adviser is available to discuss suitability of any plan for your specific situation.

low cost health insurance

Pennsylvania insurance & benefit news

Pennsylvania had the 22nd highest health insurance costs of all states in 2008 with an average family premium of $12,339 per year. (The average annual premium for a U.S. family covered under an employer-sponsored health plan in 2008 was $12,298 according to The Commonwealth Fund report. The overall quality of health care ranked 15th out of the 51 states (including DC).
Pennsylvania regulates the benefits required for both individual major medical and group health insurance plans, known as "mandated benefits".

Short Term Insurance

Celtic Insurance - surprisingly competitive rates from a well-known insurer
Markel Smart STM - popular and affordable short term major medical insurance with fast online approval
Secure STM - along with its 12 month and 36 month options, this may be the highest quality short term coverage

Intermediate Term

Inbound Immigrant - up to five years of liberal health insurance coverage after immigration including maternity coverage, emergency and other essential benefits

Supplemental Insurance

Smart Accident Insurance - supplemental coverage for emergency treatment of accidents and injuries for as little as $20 per month. Can be used as a stand-alone accident plan or to increase other insurance benefits.
Value Access Guarantee - everyone qualifies for this plan that pays in addition to any other insurance


low cost health insurance

Pennsylvania Insurance Law

The Pennsylvania Department of Insurance Web site contains an online form to allow consumers to ask an insurance question. The full text of Pennsylvania insurance laws and regulations is available online. The Web site has not yet developed resources to help individuals find commercial low cost health plans like mini-med or core coverage, specific illness policies, supplemental insurance and basic health insurance.
The state insurance department can be reached by telephone at (717)-787-2317 or by mail at 1209 Strawberry Square Harrisburg, PA 17120. The state children's health insurance plan (CHIP) Web site is Pennsylvania Children's Health Insurance Plan.

Non-insurance Discount Plans

Careington PPO Discount Plans - the nation's leading network PPO discount provider allows a no-risk trial of any discount plan for only a $20 processing fee
Drug Card America - a free prescription drug card that an be used nationwide
Essential Dental Solutions - simple, inexpensive, no waiting period, up to $500 treatment per year
Rx Pay Card - $10, $20, or $30 payments for hundreds of popular prescriptions.

See International Coverage and Travel Insurance Listings

Pennsylvania Insurance News

2/12/2011 With dozens of health plans choices available online offering a wide range of pricing and benefits, how do you find the best combination of price and benefits? Celtic Insurance realizes that the choices can be overwhelming; the company offers more than 40 possible health plan designs in many parts of the United States. A new feature called "Help Me Choose" lets users easily and quickly select the benefits they value most and narrows the list down to a few of the best choices. No personal information is required other than zip code and date of birth.

1/24/1011 Adult Basic, PA Fair Care or Special Care? Subsidized insurance for low income residents will become more complicated (and more expensive) as the Adult Basic health plan comes to an end next month. The Universal Health Insurance Blog discusses some of the lowest priced commercial insurance supplements and alternatives available regardless of income.

12/16/2010 Pennsylvania Department of Insurance officials met representatives of 44 other states and numerous employees of the federal Health and Human Services Department in Washington DC this week for a two-day working meeting to discuss the next steps in establish a government-run health insurance exchange under the American Health Benefit Exchange Model Act. Their attendance at this meeting was paid for by a $1 million federal grant awarded by HHS in September to the state for research how to set up an insurance exchange. Two states (Alaska and Minnesota) declined to participate, saying that it was a waste of taxpayer money. Four other states (not identified in press reports) that received federal grants did not send representatives to the meeting. Attendees included representatives of 16 states that are suing the federal government in an attempt to overturn the federal health reform law; specifically the requirement that forces individuals to buy health insurance on the insurance exchange or pay a hefty tax fine.

In its initial federal grant request for the insurance exchange project, Pennsylvania said that it would: 1) Address Information Technology (IT) needs; including altering their various IT benefit systems (Medicaid, Food Stamps, Exchange) so they have the ability to “talk to each other,” and designing a web-portal that offers a common entry point for consumers, 2) Produce a comprehensive report on the insurance market, uninsured populations, various Exchange models, and a cost analysis of program integration, 3) Analysis of the steps necessary to integrate public programs and private insurance processes and a cost analysis of such integration, and 4) Identification of financial, information technology and business operations processes required for implementation of a successful.

The meeting reportedly did not address the role of the commercial health insurance exchanges on the implementation of new competing government systems. The model act does not address inter-state insurance exchange proposals nor insurance sales across state lines. Federal officials admitted that they may not be able to provide further guidance until 2012. Meanwhile, most states are motivated to continue to meet requirements to obtain additional funding promised by the federal government for the establishment of insurance exchange by 2014. Freedom Benefits has previously voiced the opinion that the huge amount of money being spent to set up alternate insurance sales system technologies could be better used providing health benefits to the public. We proposed on the Universal Health Insurance blog that adequate commercial insurance sales systems are already in place that could be modified in a public/private partnership to make health insurance more affordable.

8/4/2010 PA High Risk Health Insurance Online enrollment for Pennsylvania's high risk health insurance plan begins today and personal enrollment support is available through OnlineAdviser. The cost of this insurance is primariy paid by the federal government so that the cost to individuals is less than $400 per month. The plan is administered by Highmark in Pittsburg. See www.pafaircare.com for more information. 

6/28/2010 High Risk Health Insurance: Up to 5,600 Pennsylvania residents with significant ongoing medical expenses ineligible for other coverage will soon be eligible to purchase health insurance under the federal health insurance reform program. Individual open enrollment health insurance is offered regardless of previous medical conditions except that those currently confined to a health care facility due to chronic illness or permanent injury are not eligible. Premium rates are currently $629 per month for basic adult coverage but the cost may be reduced by federal health insurance reform funds available until 2014. The subsidy funds from the federal government are expected to total more than $29,000 per participant in the high risk health plan over the next three years for each expected participant in the plan. Coverage may be limited for pre-existing conditions for the first 12 months if the applicant is currently uninsured or there is a gap in previous recent coverage greater than 63 days. Otherwise, a three month waiting period applies to pre-existing medical conditions. The plan administrator has not been announced so quotes and enrollment forms are not yet available.

5/14/2010 Diabetes Coverage: A new resource to help find health insurance for diabetics in Pennsylvania is now available at Freedom Benefits.

5/10/2010 Diabetes Coverage: Diabetes Coverage: A new resource to help find health insurance for diabetics in Pennsylvania is now available at Freedom Benefits.

3/23/2010 Pennsylvania and ten other states including Alabama, Florida, Michigan, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Washington will make a joint legal challenge to the federal health reform bill on the basis that it improperly usurps state sovereignty over health insurance and that requiring health insurance is an illegal and improper government action.


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The content on this Web page is maintained by consumer finance writer Tony Novak. Comments, feedback, questions and corrections are welcome to help keep content relevant and up-to-date. Contact the author directly by e-mail, on Twitter or through the contact information included on his Web site.

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