Washington State Healthcare Solutions

Open Enrollment is November 1st through December 15th. Outside of that time frame, it requires a special documented reason. Awarded for first year's production. We have been helping people enroll into plans on the Washington Healthplanfinder with out charging fees since the first Open Enrollment. Insurance is expensive and complicated. Not everyone has been trained by the Insurance Companies how their plans function nor went through the education and licensing for a Insurance Producer in Washington State. Just as last year, there are a lot of little or no cost plans available. When I say a lot I mean that the people in charge of Healthcare.com (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) put out a report stating 2/3 will be able to purchase a plan for $10 or less . An analysis Thursday from the consulting firm Avalere Health found that low-income residents in 96% of counties served by HealthCare.gov can find a basic "bronze" plan at no cost to them , factoring...

Expect a lot of junk plans from other sources. A couple of years ago, a group of individuals started the ACA Signup Project. I have helped out at Suzie Health Solutions and have been teaching and enrolling people in healthcare since 2013. There was a great concern that the incoming President would slash funds for the outreach and attempt to sabotage the Affordable Care Act which he campaigned against. Yes, he promised to "Repeal Obamacare from Day 1". Well it is still here and we are always looking forward to more friends joining the outreach effort. Here are some tools that will help. We have made huge improvements In Washington State we have made some huge gains and we are working on making more. We are up to one in four people receiving their healthcare from the Washington Healthplanfinder. It is open year round for enrollment of people that are at 138% of poverty or affiliated with a Native American Tribe. Some of the rural counties of Eastern Washington, we ...

Brokers have always been an important part of the Washington Healthplan Finder . We have education requirements from the state for our license. We receive regular training from the Exchange on how it functions. We receive training from Insurance Companies on how plans functions. It was no surprise that one of the first customer satisfaction survey's rated brokers extremely helpful to 80%  from people enrolling in qualified health plans. Suzie Health Solutions is a no cost broker. The Washington State Auditor's office published it's Performance Audit in 2016 confirming the importance of selecting brokers. Right off the bat on page four, they mention shifting calls to brokers as being a possibility to reduce cost.  Brokers reduce cost by how they are paid. Brokers are paid by commission or charging fees receiving no payment for Medicaid. The exchange on the other hand pays for Navigators and the Call Center which drives up costs (page 28). Certain States improved th...

Reduce your misery We get the flu shot every year. Every year people die from the flu.  “ Last year the flu killed 296 people in Washington and thousands more were hospitalized", said Dr. Scott Linquist, the state epidemiologist for communicable diseases. Getting an influenza vaccine — though not 100% effective — is the best way to prevent the misery of the flu and its complications. We don't like being miserable nor do we like inflicting misery upon others. We work with a lot of different people and some have compromised immune systems and we want our office space as safe as possible for others. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone 6 months of age or older be vaccinated annually against influenza. Do you like kids? Well one study showed that flu vaccinations reduced the risk of flu-associated death by half for children with high risk medical conditions and nearly two-thirds among healthy kids. Medical conditions  increasing...

These are the top two requests  and solved for a ton of people.  Apple Health Kids is awesome. If you are on Apple Health then you have Dental . You want to use the heck out of it. Kids can get braces if they are medically necessary. You can get cleanings and fillings. It is run by the Healthcare Authority so do not hesitate to call them directly and grill them. They don't cover bridges, implants or crowns. Their phone number is 1-800-562-3022. On Apple Health and can't find a dentist/doctor then go here .  Apple Health Vision, the kids 20 and younger are covered and the adults need to contact the administering insurance company and see what they cover. The adult's eyeglass frames and lenses are generally not covered by Apple Health but they have a discount program. These change from time to time on what they cover. The Apple Health managing companies are: Amerigroup Washington: 1-800-600-4441 Community Health Plan of Washington 1-800-440-1561 Coordinated...

It is hard to get information to the public these days. We use social media, inform the newspapers, do radio ads. One of the ones that we like to do is posters for events. It shows that they care about their customers and recognize that people need assistance in getting help with Healthcare. Take a moment to thank them and visit them if you have not done so. It is people like these that we make our home in Central Washington. In no particular order, thank you: Washington Healthplanfinder they run the tool that 1 in 4 Washington Citizens use to enroll in healthcare.  Suzie Health Solutions they run the full service enrollment center in Wenatchee. They help people solve their insurance questions for life and health with out charging a fee.  Washington Valley Pharmacy has pharmacies in East Wenatchee and Quincy. They will be providing flu shots at the Health Fair!  Mercantile provides vibrant work space in downtown Wenatchee for small businesses. ...

After six years of helping thousands of people get healthcare, we have seen a few things. I am currently running the full service enrollment center in Wenatchee . It's where we answer questions and enroll people in healthcare at no cost to them. Look if you have an account on the Washington Healthplan Finder then please keep it current. Reading your mail and paying your taxes solves the basic difficulties with the program. Here are the big tips: Put the mobile app on your phone so you can check easily check your account and get messages. The user name and passwords are the same as the desktop version.   Select a no charge broker to get your questions answered. This is maximum service for minim dollars. Some of us throw out tips on facebook and if you don't get help directly, your neighbor does.  Right off the bat if you have Apple Health Dental then use the heck out of it. You get cleanings every year, basic restorative fillings, some root canals and denture...

Healthcare is complicated. We have seen marketers and a few insurance companies use the term Trumpcare for the last couple of years with mixed results. There was even the South Florida-based operation called Simple Health Plans that was shut down by the Feds that collected more than $100 million. ( Seriously, read this before putting your information on an unknown site .)I am going to talk about a few of the niche markets being pushed by the administration. 1. Short Term Plans - In Washington state, these plans are heavily restricted. We are talking 90 day non renewable. They can exclude pre-existing conditions and can exclude treatments and overages. As I write this I am aware of 1 company offering a plan that has made it through the Office of the Insurance Commissioner's standards. With the amount of coverage excluded, we feel that a customer is best served by purchasing a full health-plan for a short period of time. We have had new customers come to us over the years...

Suzie & Matt McColm Suzie McColm has been our local go-to gal for Medicare for years.  She has been providing free help navigating Medicare and its various parts for four enrollments. By being a pharmacy technician for Wenatchee’s ShopKo, and Safeway and the Safeway in East Wenatchee for nearly 20 years, she developed relationships with local pharmacies and how different prescription plans worked on the ground level. She was able to witness first hand customers surprised that their prescription plans had changed the first of the year. Since pharmacies direct bill they often see the insurance problems first. Suzie figured if she could solve the problems on the front end then there would be fewer headaches for her customers. The world would be better with a few less surprises. When a person is qualified for Medicare, it is a big change in their life. They have either been disabled for an extended period of time or are getting ready to turn 65. Suzie has assisted people wit...

Maximum Service for Minimum Price There are a few of us no charge brokers out there for the Washington Healthplanfinder. We don't charge fees. That means our only source of income is from a person selecting us. We are not talking a lot of money and we are down to 1544 brokers last count. That is about 1000 less than when we started 6 years ago. Some have started charging fees. No we don't get paid for Apple Health Policies. (The exchange is not allowed to pay us despite being paid by DSHS to manage these accounts). No we don't get paid for some plans for a Special Enrollment. No we don't get paid for companies that don't affiliate with us. This means that we do a lot of charity work. We receive payment for about 1 in 4 policies. It is very rewarding on a spiritual level. Most people couldn't imagine getting paid for 15 minutes of every hour work. The first year that I estimated commissions for everyone that didn't select a broker, it amounted to $1 mil...