People shopping for a health insurance plan in the marketplace will often have dozens of plan options to choose from. They need to consider a number of factors when comparing plans, which can be a complex process.
Our plan comparison worksheet (available in 8 languages) and our webinar on plan selection strategies help make the process simpler to navigate.
Updated August 2024 The ACA marketplaces (also called exchanges) provide a way for people to buy affordable health coverage on their own. Health insurance plans available through the marketplace have to meet standards for the charges that people enrolled in the plan pay when they use medical care, which are…
July 2024 Beginning in the 2023 coverage year, HealthCare.gov reintroduced standardized plan design options known as “easy pricing” plans. The purpose of these plans is to simplify plan comparison within each metal level (bronze, silver, gold, and platinum) and streamline the plan selection process. The U.S. Department of Health and…
February 2024 The Summary Benefits and Coverage (SBC) is a standardized document that health insurance issuers must provide for all private health plans they offer, including ACA marketplace plans. The SBC provides an overview of a health plan’s benefits, coverage, limitations, and exceptions (although not its premiums, as these can…
This worksheet is designed to help people compare the details of up to four different plans side-by-side. It has space to record annual projected income, HealthCare.gov username and password, and application ID number, as well as a space for additional notes. This resource also includes a glossary of health insurance…
In this Beyond the Basics webinar presented on October 10, 2023, Arianna Anaya, who previously served as a certified application counselor, community health worker, and navigator in Texas and Illinois between 2014 and 2022, covers strategies to help people understand how insurance works, evaluate and compare marketplace plans, and select…
In this Beyond the Basics webinar presented on October 3, 2023, Claire Heyison, Senior Policy Analyst, covered how health insurance plans work as well as an overview of the different types of cost-sharing charges consumers may encounter, how Cost-Sharing Reductions affect costs, Standardized Plans, and using the Summary of Benefits…
In Part V of this Beyond the Basics OE10 webinar series presented on September 29, 2022, Arianna Anaya, who previously served as a certified application counselor, community health worker and navigator in Texas and Illinois, covers strategies to help people understand how insurance works, evaluate and compare marketplace plans, and…
In Part IV of this Beyond the Basics OE10 webinar series presented on September 22, 2022, Sarah Lueck, Vice President for Health Policy, covers the ins and outs of how health insurance plans work as well as an overview of the different types of cost-sharing charges consumers may encounter and…
Once a Healthcare.gov application has been submitted and after the eligibility letter has been opened, a large green Continue to Enrollment link will take you to the “Enrollment Checklist” which contains 6 steps. This resource provides detailed information on the format and function of the initial four steps, as well…
In this Beyond the Basics webinar presented by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities on October 14, 2021, in partnership with the American Association on Health and Disability, Karl Cooper, Director of Public Health Programs at AAHD, discusses disability etiquette and basic accessibility considerations for anyone doing enrollment work.…
