If you’re looking online for health insurance, there are lots of results that seem to offer good choices. But dishonest companies are literally counting on you being confused by all those choices. So, before you sign up and pay, take steps to know you’re getting exactly what the plan advertised. Otherwise, fake “coverage” can leave you exposed to substandard benefits and costly payments.
For example, according to the Federal Trade Commission, a Florida-based company, Simple Health Plans, LLC, allegedly tricked consumers into believing its plans offer comprehensive coverage and are compliant with Affordable Care Act (ACA) standards. The company allegedly lured people in through lead-generation sites, using logos of well-known health insurance providers to make itself look credible. Simple Health asked for personal information on the site, followed up with phone calls, and pitched what it said were affordable, comprehensive, ACA-qualified plans with low or no co-pays or deductibles.
But once consumers signed up — often at premiums as high as hundreds of dollars per month — the FTC says they did not get anywhere near the full coverage Simple Health promised, and the benefits were not ACA-qualified.
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Teaching Suggestions
- Ask students if they or any of their friends and relatives have received sham health insurance plans calls. If so, how did they handle such calls?
- Help students understand that two best-known and legitimate sources of the government health insurance are Medicare and Medicaid.
Discussion Questions
- What are some ways to protect yourself against false health care plans?
- Why is it important to learn the difference between health insurance and medical insurance discount plans?
Melissa Hart
Focus on Personal Finance, 7e 