A few health care open enrollments Q&As

Higher insurance premiums are pummeling Texans in the age of Obamacare, and health-care analysts say ever-bigger increases are inevitable. Those who miss the enrollment period can not purchase a plan unless there are special circumstances, such as a change in family status or loss of other health coverage. "Consumers need to check to see what the default option will be, because in this case, people who do not purchase another plan will be renewed automatically into a HMO plan". Are your copayments increasing? He has been involved in financial planning with individuals and small businesses, including insurance coverage, since 1983. Dr. David M. Rubin of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and colleagues conducted the first known formal analysis of the disparities in health care that Obamacare has caused.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which you likely know better by its shorthand Obamacare, may be a highly controversial law that draws just as much criticism as support; but when push comes to shove, it's hit on one of its primary goals of lowering the rate of uninsured around the country.

"Colorado is an unlikely place for the battle over providing universal health care to residents, an approach far to the left of the Affordable Care Act", Politico noted. Others may be closing down PPO plans in favor of HMO plans.

Here's proof of how complicated many workers find health insurance open enrollment: A recent survey by ConnectedHealth, a private insurance exchange company, found that more than half the employees polled felt choosing a health plan was more complicated than solving Rubik's Cube.

You may be eligible for a subsidy if you make between 100 percent and 400 percent of the federal poverty guideline, or $11,770 to $47,080 for a single person, and live in a state that did not expand Medicaid under the federal health law. Most therapists are self-employed, so taking time to get paid from insurance companies pulls them away from their clients.

The senator is right about one thing: a few folks enrolled in Obamacare plans are indeed getting notices that their premiums will increase next year, and others are having to choose a different plan for one reason or another. Is you preferred doctor still in your network? Health coverage guides are available in our communities to walk you through your options. In 2016, 19 percent of the new carriers on the exchanges will be provider-led plans, the report said.

What questions do you have about open enrollment? "It was required people get the insurance or else pay a penalty, and it also provided an avenue for them to qualify for subsidies". KAMU reminds consumers that they should never receive unsolicited calls from the federal Health Insurance Marketplace or from the Cover Kansas Navigator Project to enroll in insurance. You will have to pay the fee on the federal income tax return when you file.

People who go without insurance next year may be subject to a penalty of $695 or about 2.5 percent of their household income, whichever is greater. January isn't much better, as winter has settled in, and everyone is back to work and school after the holidays. For a smoother transition from your 2015 plan to your 2016 plan, you may want to enroll before December 15, 2015. Whatever you do, don't put off shopping for 2016 coverage until the last minute.

With open enrollment now in full swing, the Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved (KAMU) reminds consumers to be cautious and aware of companies offering health care insurance information.

"We are very pleased with the number of initial sign-ups during the first two weeks of open enrollment", said Kevin Patterson, chief executive of Connect for Health Colorado.