eHealth Announces Partnership with The IHC Group to Bring Health Insurance Shoppers Affordable Alternatives for the Affordabl...
October 18 2017 - 09:15AM
Business Wire
eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) (eHealth.com) has partnered with
The IHC Group to offer medical insurance packages to customers
unable to afford health insurance plans that meet all the benefit
requirements with the Affordable Care Act (the ACA, or
Obamacare).
These medical insurance packages were developed in partnership
with The IHC Group to provide an affordable alternative for people
who cannot afford Obamacare-compliant major medical health
insurance coverage but who still want meaningful protection against
unexpected medical expenses. Medical insurance packages developed
by The IHC Group will be available in 37 states and the District of
Columbia and provide a single point of service when people need to
use their benefits.
These new packages will be available to customers on November 1,
2017, when the 2018 open enrollment period is scheduled to
begin.
Offerings may differ by state but these medical insurance
packages include varying combinations of both insurance and
non-insurance products, such as short-term medical insurance,
supplemental (GAP) insurance, fixed-indemnity insurance,
telemedicine benefits, prescription drug discount benefits, and
medical advocacy services.
“Our partnership with The IHC Group will allow us to create
affordable products for our customers who cannot afford major
medical Obamacare coverage,” said eHealth CEO Scott Flanders.
“We’ve listened to our customers and developed these medical
insurance packages to better serve those customers who are not
getting what they need from our Obamacare products.”
In addition to offering these new medical insurance packages,
eHealth continues to offer major medical health insurance plans
that meet the coverage requirements of the ACA.
Medical insurance packages do not offer coverage for
pre-existing medical conditions and it is possible, with some
packages, to be declined coverage based on the presence of
pre-existing medical conditions. These products do not provide the
same benefits as major medical plans that meet the coverage
requirements of the Affordable Care Act. In particular, packages do
not provide the full set of minimum essential benefits required by
the Affordable Care Act. Persons going without Obamacare-compliant
coverage in 2018 may be subject to a tax penalty depending on their
individual circumstances.
Obamacare’s Individual Mandate Exemption & the
Affordability Gap
A recent analysis1 found that 43 percent of people who buy
health insurance in the individual market (7.5 million) don’t
receive government assistance (advance premium tax credits,
commonly referred to as Obamacare subsidies) because they earn more
than 400 percent of the federal poverty level.
The ACA defines health insurance as “unaffordable” when the
lowest-priced plan available costs more than 8.16 percent of an
individual or family’s yearly income (MAGI).
With premiums expected to rise by more than 20 percent in some
markets, eHealth recently published a report examining health
insurance costs for families that make too much to receive ACA
premium subsidies in 50 U.S. cities and found that a projected 10
percent increase in 2018 would make their health insurance
unaffordable in 47 of those cities. eHealth also analyzed ACA
health insurance premiums for individuals that make too much to
receive ACA premium subsidies in 25 U.S. cities and found that by
age 45 health insurance would be unaffordable in the majority of
those cities if premiums rise 10 percent in 2018.
Notes:
1As reported on NPR from insurance industry consultant Robert
Laszewski.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements that are forward-looking
statements as defined within the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. These include statements regarding eHealth’s
partnership with The IHC Group to offer medical insurance packages;
the availability of the new packages by November 1, 2017 in 37
states and the District of Columbia; the features and products
contained in medical insurance packages; eHealth’s partnership with
The IHC Group allowing eHealth to create affordable products for
customers who cannot afford major medical Obamacare coverage; and
analysis that a 10 percent projected price increase in 2018 would
make coverage unaffordable in 47 out of 50 states for families that
earn too much for ACA government subsidies and in 25 U.S. cities
for individuals age 45 who earn too much for ACA government
subsidies for premiums. These forward-looking statements are
inherently subject to various risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made,
including risks associated with: eHealth’s ability to maintain and
perform under the partnership with The IHC Group; changes in
governmental policy or regulation or other governmental or
regulatory actions affecting the health insurance market; changes
in health insurance premiums; the accuracy of eHealth’s analysis
and projections; the availability, benefit, and coverages of
medical insurance packages; and other factors that could cause
operating, financial, and other results to differ, which are
described in eHealth’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K or
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission and available on the investor relations
page of eHealth’s website
at http://www.ehealthinsurance.com and on the Securities
and Exchange Commission’s website at www.sec.gov. eHealth
undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to
conform to actual results or changes in intentions or
expectations.
About eHealth
eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) owns eHealth.com, a leading private
online health insurance exchange where individuals, families and
small businesses can compare health insurance products from
brand-name insurers side by side and purchase and enroll in
coverage online and over the phone. eHealth offers thousands of
individual, family and small business health plans underwritten by
many of the nation's leading health insurance companies. eHealth
(through its subsidiaries) is licensed to sell health insurance in
all 50 states and the District of Columbia. eHealth also offers
educational resources, exceptional telephonic support, and powerful
online and pharmacy-based tools to help Medicare beneficiaries
navigate Medicare health insurance options, choose the right plan
and enroll in select plans online or over the phone through
Medicare.com (www.Medicare.com), eHealthMedicare.com
(www.eHealthMedicare.com) and PlanPrescriber.com
(www.PlanPrescriber.com).
For more health insurance news and information, visit
eHealth's Consumer Resource Center.
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171018005399/en/
DMA Communications for eHealth, Inc.Sande Drew,
916-207-7674sande.drew@ehealth.comoreHealth, Inc.Nate Purpura,
650-210-3115nate.purpura@ehealth.com
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