It is interesting when looking at Colorado Health Insurance to consider the sources for health insurance in Colorado.
The state regulator has carried out various studies to check into how the market in Colorado is organized and the sources of health insurance cover in the state and reached these statistical conclusions:
It is frightening to realize that approximately 1 in 6 people have no health insurance in Colorado, and that there is a massive over-reliance on employer based schemes to pay the health care bills. And equally concerning to see that only around 1 in 15 of the population of Colorado have taken out Individual Colorado Health Insurance Cover, which actually offers the most flexibility of any of the schemes, albeit with a higher price tag. Whilst almost 1 in 4 are getting their health care cover thanks to Government programs like Medicare, Medicaid and the Veteran’s Administration.
The Employer funded portion of Colorado Health Insurance is the greatest at 54.9%, and this in turn is then split into three sub-groups:
Small Group Colorado Health Insurance Market– 5.84%
Large Group Colorado Health Insurance Market – 28.08%
Self-Funded Market – 20.99%
What is the Average Cost of Health Insurance in Colorado?
If we look into the figures that the Colorado Insurance Department provides for 2009 then we can catch a glimpse at how much typical premiums are for the various different types of health insurance in Colorado.
Health Care is by its very nature split up into quite a few different sub-types such as Long Term Care, Disability Income, Dental and Credit. But for our purposes let’s take a look at just three very common plans within some of these types above to see how average costs of Colorado health insurance vary: (Figures are average monthly premiums) Large Group Market – 28.08%
Comprehensive Major Medical - $141.61
Managed Care – HMO - $283.81
Limited Benefit Plans - $7.20
Individual – 6.4%
Comprehensive Major Medical - $177.73
Managed Care – HMO - $196.79
Limited Benefit Plans - $47.17
Small Group Market – 5.84%
Comprehensive Major Medical - $289.85
Managed Care – HMO - $276.73
Limited Benefit Plans - $35.58
It is interesting to consider that whilst the large group market does come out on top in terms of price and affordability, that individual policies were actually considerably cheaper than the small group policies for Comprehensive Major Medical cover, even though they were more expensive for limited benefit plans.
The implication of this if you are an individual looking for Colorado Health Insurance Plans is that you have nothing to fear from plowing your own furrow when it comes to health insurance, and that if you are seeking out comprehensive Colorado Health Insurance that you will pay only marginally more than if you were covered by a large group policy.
The differences are starker if you compare the limited benefit plans, because there is a very clear benefit to being a part of a big workplace insurance plan if you only want very limited medical cover.
Overall, if you can join a workplace scheme then that is often the right option, but that is not always the case as these figures prove.
Instead you should always check out a variety of individual Colorado Health Insurance Plans anyway, even if you are planning on getting a group deal, because you may find that you can actually get a very competitive policy that you end up having more control over then a work related policy.
