Consumer Reports has an article that appears in the March 2012 print edition of their magazine. The article describes, in great detail, the inadequacies of the coverage provided by mini-med health insurance plans. It also gives consumers tips about how to identify, and avoid, junk health insurance.
A mini-med health insurance plan is a great example of what the health reform laws are trying to protect Americans from. This type of health insurance is typically offered to employees who work for large corporations (such as McDonalds).
This insurance will cover up to $2,000 of expenses in a given year, for a hospitalization. Once that limit is reached, the mini-med stops covering medical expenses for that person, for the whole rest of the year. It doesn’t matter if the person gets sick enough to require hospitalization again, or, if the initial hospitalization generated bills that are more than $2,000. The mini-med plan just stops providing coverage after the cap has been reached.
Obviously, this is problematic for people who are paying for mini-med health insurance. This plan is not going to provide enough coverage for a person who ends up with a serious illness or injury. The sad thing is that not everyone realizes this when they buy a mini-med health plan.
People tend to presume that the health insurance plan they purchase will actually provide coverage for things like hospitalizations, chemotherapy, and trips to the emergency room. If you knew that your health insurance would stop coverage after your medical bills total to $2,000, would you buy that plan?
Consumer Reports has an extremely detailed article in their March 2012 print edition of their magazine that talks about “junk insurance”. Right now, it is still legal for insurers to sell mini-med plans to consumers, but they are being phased out. In 2014, those plans will be completely illegal.
Look closely at the health insurance plan you are considering purchasing. Mini-med plans are required to carry a warning that reads: “Does not meet the minimum standards required by the Affordable Care Act”.
Consumer Reports recommends that you do not sign up for a mini-med plan if you have any other health insurance option available to you. They even suggest that using public health insurance, such as Medicaid, is a much better idea than going with a mini-med health insurance plan. They also suggest that you take a look at the federal website Healthcare.gov in order to find other health insurance options.
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