Silver Plan–What Is It?

  Definition: A silver health plan is a standardized type of health insurance that pays, on average, 70 percent of your health care expenses. You pay the other 30 percent of your health care expenses in the form of copayments, coinsurance and deductibles.BackgroundTo make it easy for you to compare the value you’re getting for the money you spend on health insurance premiums, the Affordable Care Act standardized value levels for health plans. These levels, or tiers, are bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. All of the health plans within a given level are expected to offer the same overall value. For silver-tier plans, the value is 70 percent. Bronze plans offer a 60 percent value; gold plans are valued at 80 percent; platinum plans offer a value of 90 percent.What Does Value Mean When Talking About Health Insurance?The actuarial value tells you what percentage of covered health care expenses a plan is expected to pay for its membership as a whole. This doesn’t mean that you, personally, will have exactly 70 percent of your health care costs paid by your silver plan. It’s an average value spread across all of a plan’s members. Depending on how you use your health insurance, you might have more or less than 70 percent of your expenses paid.Non-covered health care expenses don’t count when determining a health plan’s value. For example, if your silver-tier health plan doesn’t provide coverage for over-the-counter medicines, the cost of them isn’t included when calculating your plan’s value.What Will I Have to Pay With a Silver Plan?You’ll have to pay monthly premiums to get the health plan coverage. Silver plan premiums are more expensive than bronze-tier plans because silver-tier plans expect to pay out more money toward your health care bills than bronze plans do. Likewise, silver plan premiums tend to be less expensive than gold or platinum-tier plans since silver plans expect to pay out less toward your health care bills.In addition to your monthly premiums, each time you use your health insurance, you’ll have to pay cost-sharing like deductibles, coinsurance and copays. How each silver plan makes you pay your 30 percent share will vary. For example, one silver plan might have a high $2000 deductible paired with a low 20 percent coinsurance. A competing silver plan might have a lower $1000 deductible paired with a higher coinsurance and a $40 copay for prescriptions.Why Should I Choose a Silver Plan?Choose a silver health plan if you’re looking to balance the cost of your monthly premiums with the cost of your out-of-pocket expenses like coinsurance and deductibles. If you want to avoid the high premium costs of gold and platinum plans, but also want to protect yourself from the possibility of having to pay an entire 40 percent of your health care expenses as you would with a bronze plan, a silver plan might work for you.If you’re eligible for cost-sharing subsidies because your income is below 250 percent of federal poverty level, you must choose a silver-tier plan to get the subsidies. You won’t get the cost-sharing subsidies if you choose a health plan from any other tier.Cost-sharing subsidies lower your deductible, copays and coinsurance so that you pay less when you use your health insurance. In effect, a cost-sharing subsidy increases the value of your health plan without raising the premium. It’s like getting a free upgrade on value. You won’t get the free upgrade unless you choose a silver health plan.Why Should I Avoid a Silver Pan?You shouldn’t choose a silver health plan if you can’t afford to pay approximately 30 percent of the cost of your health care expenses. If you’re trying to limit your expenses each time you use your health insurance, you’ll do better with a gold or platinum plan.If you use your health insurance a lot, perhaps because you have an expensive chronic condition, take a careful look at the silver plan’s out-of-pocket maximum. If you know in advance that your out-of-pocket expenses will exceed this out-of-pocket maximum, you might be able to save money by choosing a bronze-tier plan with a similar out-of-pocket maximum but lower premiums. Your total yearly out-of-pocket expenses will be the same, but you’ll pay less for premiums. You can read more about how this technique works in, “How To Save on Health Insurance if You Reach the Out-Of-Pocket Maximum.”

Bronze Plan–What Is It?

 Definition: A bronze health plan is a type of health insurance that pays, on average, 60 percent of your health care expenses. You pay the other 40 percent of your health care expenses in the form of copayments, coinsurance and deductibles.BackgroundTo make it easy to compare how much value you’re getting for the money you spend on health insurance premiums, the Affordable Care Act standardized value levels for health plans. These levels, or tiers, are bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. All of the health plans of a given level are expected to offer the same overall value. For bronze-tier plans, the value is 60 percent.What Does Value Mean With Respect to Health Insurance?Value, or actuarial value, tells you what percentage of covered health care expenses a plan is expected to pay for its membership as a whole. This doesn’t mean that you, personally, will have exactly 60 percent of your health care costs paid by your bronze plan. Depending on how you use your health insurance, you might have more or less than 60 percent of your expenses paid. It’s an average value spread across all of a plan’s members.Non-covered health care expenses aren’t taken into account when determining a health plan’s value. For example, if your bronze tier health plan doesn’t provide coverage for over-the-counter medicines like cold tablets or first-aid cream, the cost of those things isn’t included when calculating your plan’s value.What Will You Have to Pay With a Bronze Plan?You’ll have to pay monthly premiums for the health plan. You’ll also have to pay cost sharing like deductibles, coinsurance and copays when you use your health insurance. Bronze plan monthly premiums tend to be cheaper than higher value plans because bronze plans expect to pay less money toward your health care bills. You get what you pay forHow each plan makes you pay your share of your health care expenses will vary. For example, one bronze plan might have a high $3000 deductible paired with a low 15 percent coinsurance. A competing bronze plan might have a lower $900 deductible paired with a high 35 percent coinsurance and a $25 copay for prescriptions.Why Should I Choose a Bronze Plan?In choosing a health plan, if the most important factor to you is a low monthly premium, a bronze-tier health plan can be a good choice. If you don’t expect to use your health insurance much, or the high cost sharing inherent in a bronze plan doesn’t concern you, a bronze health plan might fit the bill.You might find that a catastrophic plan offers an even lower monthly premium, although with a correspondingly lower actuarial value. If you’re over 30 years old, though, you won’t be able to buy a catastrophic plan on a health insurance exchange unless you have a health insurance exemption certificate.Why Shouldn't I Choose a Bronze Pan?Don’t choose a bronze-tier health plan if you want a plan that pays for most of your health care expenses. If you expect to use your health insurance a lot, or you can’t afford high copays, coinsurance, and deductibles, a bronze plan might not be for you.If you’re eligible for cost-sharing subsidies because your income is 250 percent of federal poverty level or lower, you’re only eligible for the cost-sharing subsidies if you choose a silver-tier plan. You won’t get the cost-sharing subsidies you qualify for if you choose a bronze plan.Cost-sharing subsidies make your deductible, copays, and coinsurance lower so you pay less when you use your health insurance. In effect, a cost-sharing subsidy will increase the value of your health plan without raising the monthly premiums. It’s like getting a free upgrade on value. You won’t get the free upgrade if you choose a bronze plan.

Bronze Plan–What Is It?

 Definition: A bronze health plan is a type of health insurance that pays, on average, 60 percent of your health care expenses. You pay the other 40 percent of your health care expenses in the form of copayments, coinsurance and deductibles.BackgroundTo make it easy to compare how much value you’re getting for the money you spend on health insurance premiums, the Affordable Care Act standardized value levels for health plans. These levels, or tiers, are bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. All of the health plans of a given level are expected to offer the same overall value. For bronze-tier plans, the value is 60 percent.What Does Value Mean With Respect to Health Insurance?Value, or actuarial value, tells you what percentage of covered health care expenses a plan is expected to pay for its membership as a whole. This doesn’t mean that you, personally, will have exactly 60 percent of your health care costs paid by your bronze plan. Depending on how you use your health insurance, you might have more or less than 60 percent of your expenses paid. It’s an average value spread across all of a plan’s members.Non-covered health care expenses aren’t taken into account when determining a health plan’s value. For example, if your bronze tier health plan doesn’t provide coverage for over-the-counter medicines like cold tablets or first-aid cream, the cost of those things isn’t included when calculating your plan’s value.What Will You Have to Pay With a Bronze Plan?You’ll have to pay monthly premiums for the health plan. You’ll also have to pay cost sharing like deductibles, coinsurance and copays when you use your health insurance. Bronze plan monthly premiums tend to be cheaper than higher value plans because bronze plans expect to pay less money toward your health care bills. You get what you pay forHow each plan makes you pay your share of your health care expenses will vary. For example, one bronze plan might have a high $3000 deductible paired with a low 15 percent coinsurance. A competing bronze plan might have a lower $900 deductible paired with a high 35 percent coinsurance and a $25 copay for prescriptions.Why Should I Choose a Bronze Plan?In choosing a health plan, if the most important factor to you is a low monthly premium, a bronze-tier health plan can be a good choice. If you don’t expect to use your health insurance much, or the high cost sharing inherent in a bronze plan doesn’t concern you, a bronze health plan might fit the bill.You might find that a catastrophic plan offers an even lower monthly premium, although with a correspondingly lower actuarial value. If you’re over 30 years old, though, you won’t be able to buy a catastrophic plan on a health insurance exchange unless you have a health insurance exemption certificate.Why Shouldn't I Choose a Bronze Pan?Don’t choose a bronze-tier health plan if you want a plan that pays for most of your health care expenses. If you expect to use your health insurance a lot, or you can’t afford high copays, coinsurance, and deductibles, a bronze plan might not be for you.If you’re eligible for cost-sharing subsidies because your income is 250 percent of federal poverty level or lower, you’re only eligible for the cost-sharing subsidies if you choose a silver-tier plan. You won’t get the cost-sharing subsidies you qualify for if you choose a bronze plan.Cost-sharing subsidies make your deductible, copays, and coinsurance lower so you pay less when you use your health insurance. In effect, a cost-sharing subsidy will increase the value of your health plan without raising the monthly premiums. It’s like getting a free upgrade on value. You won’t get the free upgrade if you choose a bronze plan.

Silver Plan–What Is It?

a Definición:Un plan de salud de plata es un tipo estandarizado de seguro médico que paga, en promedio, 70 por ciento de sus gastos de cuidado de la salud. Usted paga el otro 30 por ciento de sus gastos de cuidado de la salud en la forma de los copagos, coseguros y deducibles.FondoPara que sea fácil para usted para comparar el valor que te por el dinero que gastas en primas de seguro de salud, el Affordable Care Act normalizados los niveles de valor para los planes de salud. Estos niveles, o niveles, son de bronce, plata, oro y platino. Todos los planes de salud dentro de un determinado nivel se esperan que ofrezcan el mismo valor total. Para los planes de nivel de plata, el valor es del 70 por ciento. Planes de bronce ofrecen un valor de 60 por ciento; planes de oro son valorados en 80 por ciento; platino planes ofrecen un valor de 90 por ciento.¿Qué significa valor cuando se habla de seguro de salud?El valor actuarial te dice qué porcentaje de los gastos médicos cubiertos se prevé un plan para pagar su membresía en su totalidad. Esto no quiere decir que, personalmente, tendrá exactamente el 70 por ciento de sus costos de atención médica pagados por su plan de plata. Es un valor promedio repartidos en todos los miembros de un plan de. Dependiendo de cómo usar su seguro de salud, tendrás más o menos de 70 por ciento de sus gastos.Gastos médicos no cubiertos no cuentan para determinar el valor de un plan de salud. Por ejemplo, si su plan de salud de nivel plata no provee cobertura para medicamentos de venta libre, el costo de ellos no incluyeron al calcular el valor de su plan.¿Tendré que pagar con un Plan de plata?Tendrás que pagar primas mensuales para obtener la cobertura del plan de salud. Las primas del plan plata son más caras que nivel bronce planes porque planes de nivel Plata esperan pagar más dinero hacia sus cuentas de atención médica que hacer planes de bronce. Asimismo, las primas del plan plata tienden a ser menos costoso que planes de oro o platino nivel puesto cuentan con planes de plata pagar menos hacia sus cuentas de atención médica.Además de sus primas mensuales, cada vez que usas tu seguro médico, tendrás que pagar gastos como los copagos, deducibles y coseguro. Cómo te hace pagar su cuota de 30 por ciento cada plan plata variará. Por ejemplo, un plan de plata podría tener un deducible alto $2000, acompañado de un coseguro del 20 por ciento bajo. Un plan plateado competencia podría tener un deducible de $1000 inferior apareado con un coseguro superior y un copago de $40 para las prescripciones.¿Por qué debo elegir un Plan de plata?Elija un plan de salud plata si usted está buscando para equilibrar el costo de sus primas mensuales con el costo de sus gastos como deducibles y el coseguro. Si quieres evitar los costos de alta calidad de oro y platino planes, pero también quiere protegerse de la posibilidad de tener que pagar un entero 40 por ciento de sus gastos de cuidado de la salud como lo haría con un plan de bronce, un plan de plata podría funcionar para ti.Si usted es elegible para los subsidios de gastos porque su ingreso está por debajo de 250 por ciento del nivel federal de pobreza, se debe elegir un plan de nivel plata para conseguir las subvenciones. No te las subvenciones gastos si usted elige un plan de salud de cualquier otro nivel.Subsidios de gastos bajen sus deducibles, copagos y coaseguro de modo que usted paga menos cuando utilizas tu seguro médico. En efecto, un subsidio de costo compartido aumenta el valor de su plan de salud sin tener que elevar la prima. Es como recibir una actualización gratuita en valor. No te la actualización gratuita a menos que usted elige un plan de salud de plata.¿Por qué debo evitar una bandeja de plata?Usted no debería elegir un plan de salud plata si usted no puede permitirse pagar aproximadamente el 30 por ciento de los gastos de su atención médica. Si usted está tratando de limitar sus gastos cada vez que usas tu seguro de salud, harás mejor con un plan de oro o platino.Si utilizas tu seguro médico mucho, quizás porque usted tiene una condición crónica cara, tomar una mirada cuidadosa en el desembolso máximo del plan plata. Si sabes de antemano que sus gastos superará este desembolso máximo, usted podría ahorrar dinero al elegir un plan de nivel bronce con una similar primas máximo pero menor desembolso. Sus gastos de desembolso anuales totales será el mismo, pero usted tendrá que pagar menos por las primas. Puedes leer más acerca de cómo funciona esta técnica, "Cómo a ahorrar en seguro de salud si alcanzas el desembolso máximo."