Health insurance options may be changing
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Open enrollment season is upon us and, though you'll be tempted, don't throw away that informational packet from your human resources department. This year, more so than in years past, you should be sure to review your health insurance options.
Many employer-provided health insurance plans are renewed each January, so beginning in November, employees will be notified about options and changes to their health coverage. Barring a life-changing event -- such as a family death, a marriage or the arrival of a baby -- this is your only chance to change your benefits for the coming year.
And in 2011, with several provisions of the federal health care overhaul taking effect, there could be more options than usual.
If you select a new plan, or your employer offers new plans, you might find that there are more safeguards included, by law, in your coverage: Free preventive care, no limits on the lifetime value of your coverage and your adult children, up to age 26, can stay on your plan, no matter what state you live in.
But with those changes (and even if the changes hadn't taken effect), you can expect to pay more for health insurance coverage next year. Survey after survey of employers large and small has shown businesses are expecting their own insurance costs to rise anywhere from 6 to 10 percent in 2011. One survey, by the National Business Group on Health, forecast a 9 percent increase in total costs.
That means your costs -- monthly premiums, as well as deductibles and co-pays -- may go up, too. The same survey by the health business group said 63 percent of employers planned to increase the share of health insurance premiums paid by employees in 2011, 46 percent plan to increase out-of-pocket maximums and 44 percent plan to increase in-network deductibles.
First Published November 12, 2010 12:00 am
