When it comes to providing employees with benefits, few options are as attractive as health insurance. Around 18% of the public currently have no insurance, and the upcoming health care reform laws are going to have a big impact on that. By creating private and public health insurance exchanges, these laws aim to help employers and employees find the best insurance solutions available. And understanding public health insurance exchanges is a fairly simple matter as well. With a public option included in private choices, public health insurance exchanges will offer the widest possible range of different insurance choices to ensure that virtually everyone finds the coverage that they need. Here’s a closer look at the specifics of private and public health insurance exchanges.
Basically, public health insurance exchanges are a type of health insurance marketplace. They’ll offer employers and individuals the chance to compare different insurance plans, apply for them, and buy the one that is right for them. And public health insurance exchanges will include options not just from private insurance companies, but from a public provider that is essentially a government backed insurance carrier. In other words, more options than ever before will be available to anyone in need of insurance, and finding the right policy at the right price will be a simple matter thanks to public health insurance exchanges.
These public health insurance exchanges will be set up on a state to state basis, ensuring that each area gets the right rates. Businesses can log onto the public health insurance exchanges website and start reviewing their options. Best of all, these public health insurance exchanges level the playing field and allow small companies to pay the same low rates that large corporations have been enjoying for years. That means that insurance is available at the same rates for everyone, and that those rates are as low as possible. Having various plans in one place will reduce transparency and ensure that everyone understands just what they’re paying for and if they’re paying too much.
Another key feature of public health insurance exchanges is that they will provide the chance to apply for tax breaks and subsidies. The amount will vary, as will qualification for these discounts and tax incentives, but many small businesses and individuals will fall within the guidelines. The ultimate goal of public health insurance exchanges is to deliver insurance to all Americans, and estimates are that around a total of thirty eight million people will find insurance through them, thirteen million through employer sponsored plans bought through the public health insurance exchanges. With so many financial benefits available, ignoring what public health insurance exchanges can do for your company isn’t advisable. Learn what you can about them so you’ll be ready when they open up in 2014.