Are you frustrated by a lack of options for cheap health insurance in Arizona? Do you need help navigating the complexities of the healthcare marketplace? You are in the right place!
Below we provide three tips to lower your health insurance costs and reveal the key to getting help from a local expert in health insurance, no matter where you live in Arizona.
Tips for Getting Cheap Health Insurance in Arizona
Finding affordable health insurance can be easy if you follow these tips.
Determine Health Insurance Needs
The first step to lowering your health insurance costs is to know what level of coverage you need. For instance, do you have young children? If so, you need health insurance coverage for your family that includes regular checkups, vaccinations, and prescription drugs.
If you are young and generally in good health, consider an individual high-deductible health insurance plan or a plan that is eligible for a health savings account. Such plans cover major medical expenses, such as accidents or serious illness, but may only cover doctor visits or prescription drugs after reaching your deductible.
Research Category, Network, and Plan Types
Now that you know your health insurance needs, the next step is to find out as much as possible about the categories, plans and networks available to you.
Categories
Individual and family health insurance plans on the Obamacare marketplace fall into four categories: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. The category you choose will determine how much out-of-pocket medical expense you will pay and how much the insurance company pays.
Plans in the Bronze category generally are the best way to obtain cheap health insurance in Arizona, but your out-of-pocket expenses will likely be higher. On the other hand, Platinum plans offer the lowest out-of-pocket costs for policyholders but also typically come with higher monthly premiums.
Network
The network available to you will vary by each insurer. Their networks will determine the providers, urgent care, emergency room and hospital services, and prescription drug coverage options available to you.
These networks are typically referred to as::
-
- Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO)
- Exclusive Provider Organizations (EPO)
- Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO)
- Point-of-Service Plans (POS)
Plans
The following insurers are licensed to provide individual and family coverage in the state of Arizona for the 2023 calendar year (however, not all insurers operate in all counties):
- Arizona Complete Health
- Banner Health and Aetna Health Plan Inc.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of AZ
- Cigna Healthcare of AZ
- Imperial Insurance Companies, Inc.
- Medica Community Health Plan
- Oscar Health Plan, Inc.
- UnitedHealthcare of Arizona, Inc.
Compare Plans
Anytime you make a significant financial decision, you likely do research to ensure you are getting the best product or experience for your money. Searching for cheap health insurance in Arizona should be no different.
Once you have determined your coverage needs, you can compare plans and insurers. This comparison is vital to getting the best individual or family health insurance for your needs and budget. However, different insurers may refer to the same thing using different terminology. This can make getting an apples-to-apples comparison difficult, which is why so many people end up frustrated and settling for a policy that is neither useful nor affordable.
The Role of ObamaCare
The Affordable Care Act, known as ObamaCare, was enacted in 2010 to help more Americans access affordable healthcare coverage. The Act provides premium tax credits for individuals and families, lowering their monthly costs. For many, ObamaCare is the best option for cheap health insurance in Arizona.
But gaining access to these premiums takes work. To obtain these lower premiums, individuals and families in Arizona must apply for coverage through the Federally mandated channel – the Healthcare.gov website – during a specific period known as Open Enrollment.
Related: Related: Do I Need a Computer to Get Marketplace Health Insurance?
Open Enrollment for coverage in the 2023 calendar year begins on November 1, 2022, and ends on January 15, 2023. If you do not select coverage within that window, you must either wait for the Open Enrollment period the following year or have a significant life event that qualifies you for a Special Enrollment Period.
But applying for health insurance for you and your family through the insurance marketplace can be complicated, confusing, and time-consuming. Fortunately, you do not have to figure everything out on your own.
Independent Health Insurance Brokers Are The Key To Getting Cheap Health Insurance in Arizona
As anyone who has tried to find healthcare on their own knows, health insurance is complicated! Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be. Independent health insurance brokers are your key to getting cheap health insurance in Arizona. Why is this true?
The first reason is that independent health insurance brokers are not tied to any one insurance company, so they do not have a bias for one company over another or one plan over another. Their goal is to provide you with the right insurance plan for YOUR needs, not theirs. Once they find the right fit, they will help you enroll and answer any questions that come up along the way.
Second, independent health insurance brokers live and work in your community. They are not a faceless name on the other end of a 1-800 number, ticking off boxes so they can go on to the next caller. You may run into them outside their office, at the grocery store or running other errands around town.
Third, using an independent broker to get cheap health insurance in Arizona is completely FREE! You will not pay a single penny for their services.
With all of these advantages, what are you waiting for? Find a local insurance broker in your county today!
