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12/01/2016
Navigating The Medical Insurance Gap
The unfortunate truth about the medical insurance gap is that anyone can fall into this gray area of coverage, or rather, lack of coverage. As a medical insurance broker, it's important to recognize that a large portion of your client base may be affected. Medicaid is one of the major contributors to the medical insurance gap, particularly in states that didn't expand their programs. As of September 2016, 19 states had not expanded their Medicaid programs, leaving nearly 2.5 million people uninsured nationwide, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. While California is not one of these states, it still has a growing population of adults who are under-insured, meaning that they have medical insurance, but their plans don't meet their medical needs.
Throughout the years, more and more people have been falling into the medical insurance gap with varying levels of coverage. For example, many middle-aged adults have increasing medical needs due to their age, but they are leaving their health concerns untreated until they are eligible for Medicare at 65. Someone may also fall into the insurance gap if their coverage is limited by high deductibles or if the prescription medications they need are not covered.
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