Colorado Affordable Health Insurance Quotes
Compare individual and family plans and get cheap coverage.

Health Insurance Online is a great place to find affordable Colorado health insurance quotes. Simply complete our request form and you will receive free, no obligation health insurance quotes from leading providers in Colorado. When you get your quotes, compare plans and coverage and then select the option that is best for you or your family. Colorado health insurance plans include Health Maintenance Organization Plans (HMO Plans), Preferred Provider Organization Plans (PPO Plans), Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and many others. Cheap health insurance is now available if you are willing to take the time and to review individual plans. Our site offers many resources for those who want to research more about Colorado health insurance before preparing to buy.

Unexpected medical expenses can hit your budget and impact your goals. Unfortunately, without a crystal ball, it’s almost impossible to know what your upcoming medical expenses will be and include them in your budget. Even if you could do this, would you have enough extra income to pay the tens of thousands of dollars a hospital visit can cost entirely out of pocket? Chances are you don’t and if you do, there are other places you’d rather spend it.

Health insurance offers an affordable way to make unexpected expenses manageable while keeping your budget intact. With health insurance, you pay a predetermined monthly payment (called a premium) to an insurance company and they pay for the majority of medical expenses you incur throughout the year. All you have to do is pay a small payment to the health practitioner, clinic or hospital you visit (called a copayment) and and the rest of the expense of your treatment is paid by the health insurance company.

Your insurance company pays their end of your expenses by utilizing funds that are kept in their reserve accounts. Reserves are pools of funds made up of the premium payments you and other policyholders make to the insurance company. Since not every policyholder gets sick or has an accident each year, pooled funds can often be carried over into the next year.

You determine how often you pay your premium (monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually). To ensure your policy doesn't lapse and you don't lose benefits, your premium should be sent to the insurance company well before the due date.

Terminology:

• Copayment: Copayments are the fixed amount that policyholders must pay for medical treatment or medications. Copayments are due at the time of treatment and can range from $25 to $100. Copayments for visits with specialty doctors will be on the higher end. Your copayment will be listed in your policy and on your insurance cards.
• Lapse: A lapse signifies the termination of a policy due to nonpayment of premium.
• Premium: Premiums are the "cost" of your policy. They must be paid to the insurance company by the due date in order to keep a policy from lapsing.

The Importance of Health Insurance to Colorado Residents

In 2005, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reported that almost 16% of the residents in Colorado did not have Health insurance coverage. Denver County alone had a total of 22% without health insurance. Could this be the reason why only 71.4% of Colorado women 50 and older had had a clinical breast exam and mammograms between 2003 and 2005?

Ignoring important exams and preventative care can be fatal. Diseases like cancer can spread quickly, finding them early is key in ensuring the survival of those affected. Health insurance is a simple, economical way to ensure that you have the funds you need to get the appropriate care and examinations early.

Mammograms, breast exams, hospital fees, and radiology fees are not cheap. On average, women over the age of 50 should be screened for breast cancer annually and at average cost of $2,000, the price of annual screening is daunting. Unless you are covered by health insurance. With health insurance coverage, a small copayment of $100 could be all that stands between you and piece of mind.

Choosing the Best Colorado Health Insurance Policy for You

Choosing the right policy will help make sure you can afford to keep the policy and that you are afforded with the type of coverage you most need. There are many difference coverage options when choosing health insurance policies and not all options will be right for you. Here are just some of the options available to you:

Individual Coverage: Just like it sounds, individual coverage covers you as an individual. Your underwriting approval is based on your individual health history and the policy covers you alone. You may be able to add riders to cover your children or spouse. Individual coverage offers many different options in copayments and deductibles.

Group Insurance: Group insurance is often a great way to get cheaper rates and guaranteed coverage- even if insurers consider you uninsurable. Many employers, unions and fraternal groups throughout Colorado offer group insurance benefits to their employees/ members. Unlike individual insurance, group insurance is underwritten based on the experience of similar groups and rates for group insurance are homogenized so you won’t be expected to pay an additional premium if you have preexisting conditions. If you leave the group you will be able to continue coverage under COBRA for up to 18 months (higher premiums might be expected).

HMO or PPO: When choosing individual or group coverage, you may be asked to choose between a health maintenance organizations (HMO’s) and a preferred provider organizations (PPO’s). While both provide excellent care and access to doctors, there is an important difference. Both HMO’s and PPO’s use pre-established physician networks that policyholders are permitted to visit for medical treatment. HMO’s give policyholders no insurance coverage when they see a physician or visit a hospital outside the insurance company’s network. PPO’s pay a reduced insurance benefit when policyholders visit physicians outside their network. Premiums for PPO policies are more expensive than premiums for HMO policies.

Medigap: Seniors age 65 and older will find that they need very little in insurance coverage outside of Medicare. Since Medicare does leave some “gaps” in coverage, Medigap policies can be great additions to your insurance arsenal. With Medigap coverage, you’ll have some insurance coverage for therapies, treatments and medically-related travel expenses that Medicare does not provide payment for. Medigap can also help with copayments and deductibles imposed by Medicare.

Major Medical Insurance: For some, preventative care and routine doctor visits are not a concern. When that is the case, major medical insurance is a good option. With major medical insurance you get coverage for catastrophic accidents and illnesses only. The coverage can cover surgery, hospital stays, doctor care and emergency transportation resulting from a sudden, serious accident or illness. In most instances, there will be a copayment or deductible that must be met.

Colorado’s State High Risk Pool: The state of Colorado has a state-sponsored health insurance program for residents who are considered uninsurable. To be considered uninsurable, you must have been turned down for health insurance coverage or have been asked to pay additional premiums that are considered unaffordable to the majority of the population. The high risk pool offers normal health insurance coverage with several copayment and dividend options.

Colorado’s Child Health Program (CHP): CHP is a program for uninsured children whose families make too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford individual r group coverage. CHP offers health insurance coverage to children and pregnant women. Copayments range from $2 to $15 and there may be annual enrollment fees.

Health Savings Plan (HSA): HSA’s are savings accounts that allow participants to set aside pretax funds into an account. The funds can then be used to pay for allowable medical expenses like copays, prescription drug fees, vision exams and dental visits. Many people combine the tax reducing power of an HSA with a high deductible insurance policy and use the funds in the HSA to pay for deductibles. Generally, HSA’s have a, “use it or lose it” clause that stipulates that you will lose any unused funds in the HSA at year end.

Terminology:

• COBRA: Is a program that requires employers and groups to offer an optional continuation of group health insurance benefits to those who have terminated employment or association with their group plan provider. COBRA guarantees most policyholders the right to keep their existing coverage (for a higher premium) for up to 18 months or until they get coverage.
• Deductible: A deductible is the amount of out of pocket medical expenses that a policyholder is responsible for and must pay before their health insurance policy will begin making payments. Once the deductible has been met, the policyholder pays only premiums and copayments. Deductibles can range from $500 to $5,000 and are not included in all insurance policies.
• Homogenized Rates: Rates that are equal for all participants of a set age and gender group. homogenized rates are used in group insurance.
• Preexisting Conditions: Preexisting conditions are chronic illnesses, injuries or conditions that have been treated and diagnosed prior to your acceptance of an insurance policy. Some insurance policies won’t pay for any expenses related to a preexisting condition. They can exclude the condition from coverage for a specified time period (usually one year) or permanently.
• Riders: Policy add-ons that allow you to pay an additional premium for additional coverages.
• Underwriting: Underwriting is a process in which the health of proposed policyholders is analyzed in order to determine their risk to the insurance company.

The Leading Health Insurance Plans in Colorado

There are many nationally recognized insurance companies that operate in Colorado. With insurance offices and licensed agents statewide, the variety and amount of coverage options is almost endless.

Some of the most popular companies in Colorado are:

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado: Anthem of Colorado is a subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield. They offer family plans, health savings accounts and short-term medical plans. You can get quotes and read about their plans on their official website. They have offices statewide including Denver, Colorado Springs and Aurora.

PacifiCare of Colorado: PacifiCare has individual and group plans as well as health savings accounts. They offer many add-ons to policies including vision coverage, behavior wellness, dental and pharmacy benefits. Their website gives information on their PPO and HMO plans as well as the various types of coverage available. Licensed agents can be found statewide including in the Lakewood, Fort Collins, Arvada and Pueblo areas.

Aetna: Aetna offers group insurance to businesses with as few as 2 employees. They also have individual health insurance options and dental insurance coverage. Their website is comprehensive and has a wealth of information on staying healthy. Offices can be found nationwide including in Westminster, Boulder and Thornton.

Colorado Health Insurance Coverage

With options available for every budget and any health history, there is no reason why 100% of Colorado residents should not be covered by health insurance. By exploring your options and tailoring a policy until it fits your needs, you could be covered by insurance and ready to meet any health adversities head on in no time.