Affordable Health Plans Do Exist

After the economy, health care is a major concern to Americans. Businesses and individuals believe they have no option when it comes to finding affordable health care options. More importantly and critically, small businesses and individuals face a confusing array of choices with little guidance on how best to approach health care for their situation.

Affordable health plans do exist. In the health care insurance industry, there are some online services that provide an excellent resource for businesses looking for affordable health care insurance.

eHealthInsurance.com has been tracking health care costs since 2001. It is one of the few organizations with long-term national source data tracking its customer's health insurance spending and costs. Today eHealth has released its commissioned report "Costs and Benefits of Individual and Family Health Plans." The report shows that affordable health care options do exist, but costs vary according to region, sex, and the type of plan purchased. For example, the average monthly premium for an individual plan in North Dakota was $83, while in New York, the average was $388 per month. In fact, the Northeast paid an average $239 per month while the Midwest averaged $130 per month. There was an 18% average monthly premium difference between men and women with women paying an average $171 per month compared to $145 for men. The overwhelming majority of those plans were Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plans.

Finally, eHealth's survey shows that plans that were eligible as health care savings account (HSA) plans, have the potential to lower premiums significantly. On average, a family plan, as an HSA, was $78 per month less expensive than a traditional plan. It is an encouraging report that can give you some sense of the factors that control premiums and some options that will save premium dollars.

eHealth also has a small business section on its website. This is a great tool when you are looking for small business health coverage.