Help me find medical insurance in Boston.

May 14, 2008 12:33 PM

Help me find medical insurance in Boston.

My family and I are moving to Boston in a couple months so I can return to school. Up until now, my employer has provided our medical insurance. However, I will not be employed while in school, and my wife (a music teacher) is still looking for a position. I can elect to use COBRA, but the premiums are outrageous. I vaguely know Massachusetts has a law requiring all residents to be covered by insurance. So I have several questions. First, how long do we need to reside in MA to qualify for any plans offered to residents? Second, where do we go to look for plans? Finally, which plans do MA MeFites recommend or avoid like the plague? If we can't look for policies through whatever state mechanism exists, please recommend a broker or other solution.

We are a family of three (two adults and a 4-year-old). Any plan we consider will have to have (a) decent prescription drug benefits and (b) mental health coverage.

posted by nightengine to health & fitness (8 comments total)

This website should answer most of your questions.
posted by phoenixy at 12:44 PM on May 14, 2008

The low-income plans offered through MassHealth and/or Commonwealth Care are quite good, and the premiums are on a sliding scale. Your child (if not you and your wife) will likely be eligible for MassHealth, which will cost less than $20/mo, if anything. Your school may also have insurance available for students and their families.

The Connector (the site phoenixy linked to) is the site to go through. Keep in mind, the paperwork/bureaucracy is about as bad as you might imagine from a state-managed health care plan, but just kind of keep your head down and plow through it and you will make it out the other end.
posted by Rock Steady at 1:03 PM on May 14, 2008

check out http://www.healthcareforartists.org/ -- they have a fair bit of good info.
posted by rmd1023 at 1:14 PM on May 14, 2008

Might your school offer health care? Many (all?) colleges in the state require students to be insured, and my undergraduate institution offered a plan.
posted by kwaller at 1:43 PM on May 14, 2008

I can vouch for MassHealth -- they took a two months to process my application, but they took really good care of me when I had no income and was suffering from some pretty extreme depression/anxiety. I elected to be on the "Neighborhood Health Plan" and my options for doctors in my area were very good (...except for dentists when I was living in the suburbs. But that shouldn't be a problem for you if you're living in Boston proper). They covered regular doctors, behavioral health (a really reasonable amount. I think 12 visits plus more if there's a medical need), dental and vision.

If you literally have zero income, you pay NO copays and prescriptions are $1-$3 (depending on whether they're generic), and birth control is free. I can't vouch for how good they are if you do have income, but I'd think it would be manageable.

I applied for MassHealth after I'd lived out of the state for about a year. I'd been back for maybe a couple of months, tops. This is all as of a couple months ago.
posted by giraffe at 2:13 PM on May 14, 2008

One place to find out information about health insurance is the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute. They collect ways to get--and keep--health insurance in every state.
posted by librista at 2:18 PM on May 14, 2008

Oh, delayed reaction elaboration (I was running out of the office when I replied): I'm speaking as someone who applied individually for health insurance with no family or dependents or anything of that nature. Sorry I can't give more family-related advice.
posted by giraffe at 3:30 PM on May 14, 2008

MassHealth (for low income people) provides really good care! A family can earn up to
$50,000 per year and still be eligible for a reduced rate policy.
posted by boby at 6:27 AM on July 27, 2008