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Health Insurance Plans.
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Health Insurance Plans
Blue Shield of California is known as one of the largest health plans providers in America. It has a membership of over 3.5 million people. The company was founded in 1939 and is one of the oldest in the field as well. It is very popular with most people because of the voluntary health plans that they offer which cater for almost every individual regardless of their social standing or financial capabilities. The following paper will compare some of the voluntary health insurance plans provided by Blue Shield of California and get to understand why the company is as popular as it is.
A voluntary plan allows patients to have specific benefits for themselves or their families (BulidMyBiz, 2012). The company offers four different health insurance plans that are all voluntary. They are the Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum plans. Each is distinct from the others and offers some degree of uniqueness. All four plans can be acquired from Blue Shield or Covered California, and financial aid is provided for all of them through Covered California. They vary in their deductible and out-of-pocket maximum amounts. The calendar year deductibles for the four plans are as follows: $6,300 per individual/ $12,600 per family for the Bronze plan, $2,500 per person / $5,000 per family for the Silver Plan while no amount was deductible for the Gold and Platinum Plans. The maximum calendar payout was $6,800 per individual / $13,600 per family for Bronze, $6,800 per person / $13,600 per family for Silver, $6,750 per person / $13,500 per family for Gold and $4,000 per person / $8,000 per family for Platinum plans CITATION Blu16 l 1033 (Blue Shield California, 2016).

All the plans included a 24 hour, seven days a week access to a doctor and guaranteed out of network coverage. They all charged differently for emergency services where a patient is not taken to the hospital that varied from $75, which is the highest to $15, which is the lowest.
The reimbursement process for most health insurance plans is almost the same. It follows a standard procedure of visiting the doctor, examination and providing medical insurance to the staff. When expounded, the process is more complicated than is apparent at first. Once the physician and the patient settle on a mode of treatment then benefits investigation can begin. Paperwork has to be filed, and the company helps the patient go through his or her plan to properly understand what they are entitled to get CITATION Bri15 l 1033 (Bristol-Meyers Squibb, 2015). Once the paperwork is done, then it is submitted, and the company goes through it to ensure that all the details are accurate and to determine whether the client is entitled to the benefits that he or she claims depending on the plans they subscribed to. If the company denies provision of insurance based on any reason, then the patient may appeal. A unique process allows for patients who feel aggrieved by coverage decisions to appeal. One change in health is the use of technology for storage of information, as the world is going digital at a phenomenal speed. Today, healthcare is a basic need and everyone is entitled to the best care that they can get regardless of their financial standing. Such healthcare should not only be affordable but properly provided as well. The Affordable Care Act has also changed the dynamic of healthcare insurance as patients are in control of their finances and it works to make healthcare accessible and of better quality.
Different companies have different health insurance plans. Going by research, Blue Shield of California offers some of the best plans. The company also caters for everyone across the economic divide and makes it easier for those who earn less to have affordable medical insurance. The company’s experience makes it adept at dealing with a variety of situations, and they have a particular appeal process for any patient who feels they have wrongly been denied compensation. Anyone wishing to take a health cover would be advised to try Blue Shield of California.
References
BIBLIOGRAPHY Blue Shield California. (2016, May 21). Plan Comparison. Retrieved from Blue Shield of California: https://blueshieldcaplans.com/compare-plans.html?marketcode=15WS10900&PH=undefined&cmp=bronze-60+silver-70-hmo+gold-80+platinum-90&vwd=&plans=2
Bristol-Meyers Squibb. (2015, July 16). Learn how the process of reimbursement works. Retrieved from Bristol-Meyers Squibb: http://www.bmsaccesssupport.bmscustomerconnect.com/reimbursement
BuildMyBiz. Voluntary and Individual Insurance 101 | BuildMyBiz Materials. (2015, September 12). Retrieved 7 November 2016, from http://buildmybiz.com/material/voluntary-individual-insurance-101/