Last week, I shared that I spoke to a health insurance broker to see what my options were once my COBRA coverage ends in mid-April. After stressing about the end of my coverage quickly approaching and spending many hours getting confused by the options on the New York healthcare marketplace, I’m glad I reached out to someone who knew more about the subject than I did. We had a great conversation, and she presented me with a couple of options. However, I continued talking to different people in the hopes of finding a better solution.
Then, over the weekend, I began chatting with a woman mid-ride at the barn. She’s a veterinarian and told me about her health insurance plan. I immediately asked if she would share the broker’s contact information, which she kindly did. With the clock ticking on my current coverage, I wasted no time calling the broker she recommended to me. He was pleasant on the phone and asked for my email so he could send me more information about the plans he offered and the rates. A few minutes later, an email popped up from him, and the contents of it shocked me.
After doing tons of research on my own, I was convinced I was going to end up paying a fortune for sub-par health coverage (an option that wasn’t ideal and was the source of many sleepless nights). The first broker I spoke with all but assured me I would never get a plan on my own that was comparable to my current plan. And to be honest, the idea of getting a plan that required me to get referrals before I could see my specialists sounded like a nightmare. Plus, to have to pay top dollar for that type of plan less than thrilled me. So, when I opened the email from the second broker and saw the letters, PPO, next to the plan, to say I was elated would be an understatement. PPO plans tend to be open access, meaning you can see providers so long as they are in-network, and you don’t need a referral. From the looks of the information he provided me, these plans were comparable to what I have now through United Healthcare and COBRA. The best part is that even though the plans cost as much as rent in some states, these plans were $500 a month cheaper than the HMO plan I learned about last week.
The moral of the story is this—it pays to talk to people and ask for resources. If I hadn’t struck up a conversation with this woman at the barn, I likely would have enrolled in the HMO plan because I felt as though I was out of options. I’ve literally spoken to everyone I can think of to try to solve this health insurance issue because I knew that someone would think of something I hadn’t. From friends who were looking into contract work that might offer me insurance to clients who asked around in their own networks, solving my health insurance issue was very much a collaborative group project, and I’m thankful to everyone who joined me in putting their heads together.
I’ve learned throughout this process that where there’s a will, there’s a way. It may take longer than you anticipated, and you might have to think outside the box, but there is usually a solution to most problems if you spend enough time thinking it through.
For me, the next step in the insurance process is to speak to my doctors to ensure they participate in these plans and then to choose the best option. Then, hopefully, I can enroll and not have to think about health insurance for a while.
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