What Is the Most Affordable Health Insurance in Texas?
by Raul Gonzalez Texas Medicare SolutionsThe most affordable health insurance in Texas differs from county to county. In over 35% of counties in Texas, the cheapest Silver tier plan is Blue Advantage Silver HMO. Another cheap option that is widely available is First Care Prime Silver HMO. You may get cost-effective or subsidized plans in the Texas health insurance marketplace from around 10 health insurance carriers. However, it is to be noted that not all insurers offer all plans in each county.
Cheapest Health Insurance Coverage by Plan Tier Want to know: Which is the best health insurance in Texas for you, according to your preferred level of coverage? To help you get the answer to this question, we have compared
different health policies by plan tier and found the most affordable health insurance options in Texas. The costs below are for a 40-year-old individual.
Plan Tier | Cheapest Plan | Monthly Cost | Deductible | Out-Of-Pocket Maximum |
Catastrophic | Christus CHP TX Catastrophic | $260 | $8,700 | $8,700 |
Bronze | Blue Advantage Bronze HMO, 301 | $323 | $8,700 | $8,700 |
Bronze Expanded | MyBlue Health Bronze, 402 | $316 | $7,400 | $8,700 |
Silver | MyBlue Health Silver‚ 405 | $400 | $3,550 | $8,700 |
Gold | MyBlue Health Gold‚ 403 | $380 | $1,100 | $8,700 |
The combination of health plans and insurance companies varies from county to county, hence not all of the ones above are available in every county. However, you can use it as a reference point to assess what monthly premiums to expect with respect to out-of-pocket costs and benefits.
Average Cost of Having Health Insurance in Texas by Age
Plan Tier | Age 21 | Age 40 | Age 60 |
Catastrophic | $277 | $354 | $753 |
Bronze | $348 | $445 | $945 |
Bronze Expanded | $368 | $471 | $1000 |
Silver | $450 | $575 | $1222 |
Gold | $510 | $652 | $1385 |
Which Is the Best Health Insurance in Texas
To determine the right health insurance in Texas for you or your family, you may require considering a couple of factors, such as:
- Estimated health care expenses in a plan’s year
- Sum of money you can keep aside for emergency situations
- Household income
- Whether or not you qualify for discounted insurance plan via tax credits
Gold Plans Are Best for Those Who Have Expensive Health Care
Individuals with costly medical needs, particularly those requiring regular prescriptions or undergoing costly procedures, should get a plan with comprehensive coverage, like a Gold-tier plan. Gold plans have higher monthly premiums, but they usually lower your out-of-pocket medical care costs, ultimately saving you considerable money.
Gold plans typically have much lower coinsurance, deductibles, and copays, which means that a visit to a health service provider will cost you less, compared to a lower-tier health plan.
It is particularly crucial to keep in mind the coinsurance and copays for prescription drugs, as it is usually an element of a plan’s benefits with the maximum regular use.
Silver Plans Are Best For Individuals Having Average or Low Income
Silver health plans are a decent option for most people as they help balance monthly premium payments and out-of-pocket expenses. Silver tier plans are also highly beneficial for low-income households.
These are the only plans that feature a cost-sharing reduction, which lets lower-income households to take advantage of cheaper deductibles, coinsurance, and copays, when compared with a regular plan.
For households with earnings below 250% of the federal poverty level, a Silver plan is perhaps the best option in almost every situation. These have lower premiums than Gold tier plans, and their cost-sharing feature is adjusted to match costlier options.
Bronze and Catastrophic Plans Are Best For People Who Are Young and Healthy
Bronze and Catastrophic plans are among the cheapest health insurance options in Texas. These plans have low premiums, but have high out-of-pocket costs, generally with out-of-pocket maximums and deductibles close to the highest amount allowed by law. For 2022, this amount is $17,400 for a household and $8,700 for an individual.
People often find the lower-premium feature of such plans quite attractive, but these plans usually cover nothing until you pay thousands of dollars in medical bills first from your pocket.
Health Insurance Rate Variations in Texas
Any changes to health insurance premiums are done by health insurers, annually. Prior to setting these premiums, they are required to be approved by the federal health insurance exchange.
In the state of Texas, the average monthly rates of every tier plan enhanced for 2022, compared to 2021. The highest increase has been observed in Silver and Bronze plans, which is by 13%. Catastrophic plans saw an increase of 5%, which is the lowest increase among all tiers plans.
Plan Tier | 2021 | 2022 | Change (in %) |
Catastrophic | $336 | $354 | 5 |
Bronze | $393 | $445 | 13 |
Bronze Expanded | $427 | $471 | 10 |
Silver | $509 | $575 | 13 |
Gold | $607 | $652 | 7 |
Best Cheap Health Insurance Companies in Texas
On the Texas state exchange, there are presently 10 health insurance carriers, which is the same as last year. Health Insurance Companies in Texas are as follows:
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas
- Christus Health Plan
- Celtic Insurance Co.
- Community Health Choice Inc.
- Oscar Insurance Co.
- Friday Health Insurance Co. Inc.
- First Care Health Plans
- Scott and White Health Plan
- Molina Healthcare of Texas Inc.
- Sendero Health Plans Inc.
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Created on Oct 11th 2022 10:44. Viewed 184 times.