Everything You Need to Know About Shopping for Health Insurance

By law, everyone must have health insurance.

If you’re not insured through your employer:

3 months is how long you can legally go
without health insurance

If you’re not insured after that, you could pay a tax penalty. If you need to shop for your own insurance, avoid the penalty and start considering your options today.

Let’s get started

Health Insurance: The Basics

Everyone’s different, so the best plan for you
will depend on a number of factors.

Step 1 Get an idea of costs

Head to a health insurance website
and input your:

ZIP code
Gender
Birthdate
Tobacco status
Spouse or any
dependants
(if they need coverage also)
Income

Your health
insurance cost

Step 2 Consider tax subsidies vs. overall cost

71% of Americans who buy their own health insurance may be eligible for a tax subsidy.

You might qualify for this if you make less than $30,000 a year, but requirements vary from state to state.

However...

It’s best to comparison shop between the government and
private exchanges – the private marketplace can be cheaper.

Click to find
out more

Step 3 Consider the costs based on plan

Understand how much you have to pay in addition to your monthly premium cost.

Lower
Monthly Costs

Higher
Monthly Costs

BRONZE

Pay 40% of
healthcare costs
SILVER

Pay 30% of
healthcare costs
GOLD

Pay 20% of
healthcare costs
PLATINUM

Pay 10% of
healthcare costs

22%

70%

70% of Americans who enrolled chose a Silver plan
from the federal exchange in 2016.

Click to find
out more

Step 4 Check the deductible

A deductible is a fixed amount you have to pay
before any benefits from your policy can be used.

The lower the deductible, the higher cost the policy will be.

Average Individual Deductible
Average Family Deductible

$0

$0

Bronze plan
$0

$0

Silver plan
$0

$0

Gold plan
$0

$0

Platinium plan

Step 5 Consider your healthcare needs

Do you go to the doctor frequently?
If not, you may prefer a high deductible policy,
and to pay for smaller procedures yourself.

Consider this:

Bronze plan

$0 /month

Deductible: $0
OR
Silver plan

$0 /month

Deductible: $0

If you plan to visit a doctor
several times a year, a more expensive plan
can work out cheaper.

Step 6 Check prescription coverage

Do you have many prescriptions?
If so, check the plan’s coverage.

Copayment

You pay a set amount (e.g. $10) for all drugs on a certain tier.
Coinsurance

You pay a percentage of the cost (e.g. 25%) of the drug.

Step 7 Look at the network

Do you want to stick to a particular doctor or hospital?
Or are you more concerned about costs?

Larger network Click to find
out more

Higher premium Click to find
out more

More options Click to find
out more
Narrow network

Lower premium

Limited options

Step 8 Buy a plan

You’ve weighed up all your options
– now it’s time to buy your plan.

Tips

Compare insurance plans both on and off-exchange.

Think about your health care needs and do the math to decide if a high-deductible plan is right for you

Answer application questions truthfully. You can no longer be penalized for pre-existing conditions.

If you don’t receive your insurance company ID cards within 3 weeks, contact the company.

Make sure the insurance company is billing you each month. Glitches occur – you could lose your coverage for non-payment because of a billing error.