GET CURRENT PLANS AND PRICING
New Hampshire insurance law and regulation
The state insurance department can be reached by telephone at (603) 271-2261 or by mail at 21 South Fruit Street, Suite 14 Concord, NH 03301. The state children’s health insurance plan (CHIP) Web site is New Hampshire Healthy Kids (NHHK).
News that affects your health insurance and planning
March 22, 2019 – This week the New Hampshire Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration announced that $12 million additional funding will be available to fight the opioid epidemic. The money will be used for services and facilities to expand prevention, treatment, and long-term recovery.
December 10, 2018- The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services will hold meetings in January and February to introduce a new health insurance program for people enrolled in Medicaid. The new program called Granite Advantage Health Care, will replace the N.H. Health Protection Program’s Premium Assistance Program in 2019. In general, Freedom Benefits plans are used by residents who are not eligible for Medicaid.
The history of health care planning in New Hampshire (Information is outdated and links may be expired)
2/11/2014 Professional support for any health care reform issue is available free of charge through an arrangement with OnlineNavigator. All online inquiries are handled personally by Tony Novak, CPA. Online support is available through a number of popular social media channels including Facebook and Google+ as well as e-mail. Telephone support for insurance enrollment is available through Members Insurance Exchange at (800) 609-0683.
7/26/2013 Affordable Smart Term Life Insurance is now available to most New Hampshire residents from age 20 through 60 directly online with no physical exam, agent appointment or telephone verification. Most policies are issued on the same day with coverage amounts of $25,000 up to $350,000. The level premium life insurance is available for terms of 10, 15, 20 and 30 years. Sample rates for $150,000 coverage for a preferred risk male age 30, non-tobacco $30.85 per month; tobacco user $49.55 per month. A preferred risk female age 30 non-tobacco user would be $26.49 per month and a tobacco user would be $40.96 per month. Rates are higher for older applicants and lower health risks as described online. Pricing is based on input you provide about your medical history but, unlike most other life insurers, does not consider family medical history. Coverage is issued by innovative National Life Group, rated “A” by A.M. Best Company for 2013.
5/19/2013 Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Hampshire individual insurance policies are now available though the online health insurance exchanges.
3/11/2013 This page was updated to include a link to the insurance plan that will be used to determine specific “essential health benefits” for insurance that qualified for 2014 federal tax purposes. Also, a link to additional covered benefits required by state law. Non-qualified insurance is likely to continue to be available at a lower cost that does not include these benefits nor qualify for federal tax purposes.
6/25/2012 New Hampshire Governor Lynch signed into law a prohibition from setting up a state health insurance exchange. The law says that no “state agency, department or political subdivision shall plan, create, participate in or enable a state based exchange for health insurance.” The federal Department of Health and Human Services still could establish a health insurance exchange in the state at a later date. This new legislation does not affect Freedom Benefits insurance exchange from operating in the state because the project is organized by collaboration of commercial businesses and funded entirely with private investment. Consumer assistance is provided through volunteer efforts through www.OnlineNavigator.org. The supplemental insurance exchange resources will continue regardless of the state’s position on their public insurance exchange.
2/21/2012 New Hampshire health insurance mandates – a recently updated listing is now available online in PDF format. We made special note that the state’s continuation of coverage law applies only to persons leaving group insurance plans and not to those leaving individual insurance. Details of the state’s Preexisting Condition Insurance Plan are also available.
2/1/2012 The Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, a division of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)reported that as of June 30, 2011 Anthem BCBS is the state’s largest health insurance provider and as such, earns the right to set the benchmark for the development of the state’s essential benefit plans to debut in 2014 under health reform law.
6/15/2011 UnitedHealthcare’s Golden Rule Insurance Company will no longer offer Short Term Medical plans to new customers in New Hampshire as of June 16, 2011. This change does not affect existing customers in the state who have Golden Rule’s Short Term Medicalcoverage. This change removes the only remaining UnitedHealthcare individual insurance product from the state of New Hampshire. Alternative short term major medical insurance products are available in New Hampshire from Markel Insurance Company and Standard Security Life Insurance.
12/16/2010 New Hampshire Insurance Department officials met representatives of 44 other states and numerous employees of the federal Health and Human Services Department in Washington DC this week for a two-day working meeting to discuss the next steps in establish a government-run health insurance exchange under the American Health Benefit Exchange Model Act. Their attendance at this meeting was paid for by a $1 million federal grant awarded by HHS in September to the state for research how to set up an insurance exchange. Two states (Alaska and Minnesota) declined to participate, saying that it was a waste of taxpayer money. Four other states (not identified in press reports) that received federal grants did not send representatives to the meeting. Attendees included representatives of 16 states that are suing the federal government in an attempt to overturn the federal health reform law; specifically the requirement that forces individuals to buy health insurance on the insurance exchange or pay a hefty tax fine.
In its initial federal grant request for the insurance exchange project, New Hampshire said that it would: 1) Obtain an impact analysis on public sector program costs and effect on the general fund of the State, 2) Inform, educate, and involve stakeholders including a utilization assessment, 3) Develop a general public education and outreach plan regarding an Exchange, 4) Develop a macroeconomic model to predict plan migration, analyze the effect of New Hampshire insurance mandates, and identify and quantify risks of adverse selection and insurance market disturbance, 5) Exchange and analysis of budgetary impacts on State as well as appropriate internal and external controls, and 6) Obtain analysis of current State laws and regulations relevant to Exchange and a summary of policy and legislative recommendations for establishing an Exchange and Affordable Care Act implementation.
The meeting reportedly did not address the role of the commercial health insurance exchanges on the implementation of new competing government systems. The model act does not address inter-state insurance exchange proposals nor insurance sales across state lines. Federal officials admitted that they may not be able to provide further guidance until 2012. Meanwhile, most states are motivated to continue to meet requirements to obtain additional funding promised by the federal government for the establishment of insurance exchange by 2014. Freedom Benefits has previously voiced the opinion that the huge amount of money being spent to set up alternate insurance sales system technologies could be better used providing health benefits to the public. We proposed on the Universal Health Insurance blog that adequate commercial insurance sales systems are already in place that could be modified in a public/private partnership to make health insurance more affordable.
5/14/2010 Diabetes Coverage: A new resource to help find health insurance for diabetics in New Hampshire is now available at Freedom Benefits.