New laws that were established through the Affordable Healthcare Act require that all citizens must acquire Health Insurance in Scranton PA before the March 31st deadline. Anyone who fails to obtain health insurance through the federal insurance exchange are penalized when filing their taxes at the end of 2014. The starting penalty does not exceed $300 per uninsured individual; it does, however, increase each year following and may exceed $500 per person by 2016. For this reason, more private sector insurance providers have began to offer health insurance at affordable rates that everyone can utilize.
Low-income Families
Programs such as Medicaid and Medicare are designed to assist families with limited incomes acquire health coverage at little to no cost. They must, however, fulfill the eligibility qualifications set forth for the state of Pennsylvania. A caseworker through the insurance companies can provide anyone who wishes to file an application with a plentiful amount of information that shares what services are covered and what costs are expected.
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Blue Cross Blue Shield is another insurance program in which any consumers can participate. This program provides the option to choose a HMO or PPO based insurance policy to cover their medical expenses. With a HMO, the insurance carrier is required to use an in-network doctor as their primary physician who will manage all of their healthcare needs. To see a specialist, the primary doctor must provide the patient with a referral and schedule the appointment through their office. The specialist must be within the same network of doctors for coverage to be provided.
Alternately, a PPO allows patients to choose their own doctor whether he or she is inside the network or not. This allows for a higher selection of doctors for these patients. The drawback is that some policies do not cover the vast amount of medical services that are covered through the HMO option. However, in some cases it is possible to receive insurance that covers ninety percent of medical costs after the deductible is met each year. HMO-based insurance typically covers eighty percent of services. Anyone who wishes to receive a free Health Insurance in Scranton PA.
