For California health insurance consumers, going uninsured is not a viable option. A just published UCLA Center for Health Policy Research states the number of uninsured residents continues to climb and that the severity of the loss is spread out amongst the entirety of the state. Ventura County – home to Vitality’s main office – was one of many California counties where the number of uninsured was on the rise as a result of the state’s economic downturn.

If you have lost your health insurance and find yourself searching for an affordable California health insurance plan for yourself and/or family, we can help. We do understand: This is an emotional time for many Californians: Jobs have been lost and along with those jobs, the health coverage you and your family were dependent on.

The first, most important step you can take is to be proactive in seeking out affordable individual California health insurance plans. While you may have COBRA coverage at present, you probably already know that is an expensive option. While you still have that COBRA coverage, take the time to reach out to a California health insurance professional here at Vitality and let’s discuss what your unique needs are as they relate to health coverage for you and your family. Our client services are always free as are the fast, easy, and convenient California health insurance quotes you can access via our website’s easy-to-use quote engine or via a personalized one-on-one client consultation with a member of our team.

Some thoughts before delving into the individual health insurance marketplace:

• First, it is important to put aside your emotional attachment to what you might have been used to as employee covered by group health insurance California businesses purchase on behalf of their employees.
• Next, it is important to look past any initial negativity you may have when you hear or see the words ‘high deductible health plan’. In the pursuit of affordability, you’ll want to look at these plans and especially the HSA-compatible high deductible health plans. These health plans are capable of being matched with a Health Savings Account and  have been shown to provide important tax savings, typically lower monthly premiums, and – perhaps for the first time in your dealings with health insurance – have the very real ability to empower you and your choices in how your health care dollars are spent!
• High deductible health plans are exactly that: Health plans with high annual deductibles and higher annual maximum out-of-pocket expenses. These are perhaps quite unlike what you were used to as part of a group health coverage scenario but they still provide absolutely vital benefits to their owners:

1. First and foremost: Owning this health plan is about protecting your long term financial wellbeing. You know that health care costs in this country are high. Encountering a serious illness or injury without access to health insurance can be financially devastating. Medical bankruptcies do occur.  While a high deductible plan may not be your first choice for a health plan, they should still have an important place in your overall financial planning strategy.
2. These plans typically provide varying degrees of preventive services. Plus – thanks to Health Reform – certain new preventive services will be added to all new plans sold on or after September 23^rd, 2010 and these will be covered by your plan without charging you a copay, co-insurance or deductible – provided that these services are delivered by a network provider – as mandated by the Affordable Care Act. If using your preventive health care services wasn’t something you typically did before….? Please make sure it is something you do now. Being proactive with your preventive health services, practicing a healthy living lifestyle with regular exercise and good nutrition (And please quite smoking or don’t start!) are all part of successfully using the cost saving advantages offered by high deductible health plans.
3. Owning a health plan makes you a member of that insurance company’s health plan: That means that when using network providers you’ll likely pay less for the services of the providers in that insurance company’s network! That’s budget friendly to your household budget. So here again, owning a health plan provides yet another important advantage.

We mentioned above that we understand California health insurance consumers. We also understand that the shopping process for the right California health insurance strategy can be frustrating. Some consumers have used group health coverage benefits their entire lives dating back to their parents’ plan(s). This may be the first time you have ever shopped for health insurance in California. This is where reaching out to the Vitality Health Insurance Services team can alleviate stress and helps you create a new California health insurance strategy for you and your family that removes worry and helps to ensure peace of mind moving forward.

We’ll help you understand the affordable options available to you; walk you through the health insurance underwriting process, and then – once your plan is in place – we’ll be your easy-to-reach point of contact for any future service related issues or questions you may have. Here again, our client services are always free and always dedicated to providing the client with a Total Quality experience.