I'm uninsured and living in Georgia. What are my health insurance options?

In Georgia you have limited guaranteed access to buy health insurance. In Georgia, individual plans can count any condition as pre-existing for which you received medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment in no more than 2 years before individual coverage begins.  Elimination riders can be imposed.

Your health status can be used to determine the premium you pay. In Georgia, you have guaranteed renewability, which means that if you paid all of the premiums you cannot be denied coverage even if you become ill.

You have three basic options for obtaining health insurance as an individual other than employer or union plans in Georgia :

1. Private Health Insurance
2. Health Insurance through Associations
3. Health Insurance through Income Eligible Programs
   

There are several types of plans that are available to purchase as an individual/couple/family:

Health Insurance through Associations

If you cannot afford any of the plans listed above, you may want to consider the option of joining an association and purchasing insurance as one of its members. When you purchase health insurance at a "group" rate, you usually have a lower premium.

Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants: Membership Benefits
The Georgia CPA Group Account offers group life insurance, group comprehensive major medical, group dental, group long-term disability, individual life insurance, individual medical insurance, and long-term care.

The Printing Industry Association of Georgia : Membership Benefits
A membership to the PIAG includes optional HMO, PPO and POS plans available to participating members. A guide is available with more information about individual plans (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, a free program) accessible in the middle of the site’s main frame. A variety of memberships is available, and can be viewed through the “join PIAG online” link on the left side of the page.

Income Based Health Insurance Programs

If you cannot afford private insurance or insurance through associations, you may be eligible for government subsidized programs that have been designed to help keep individuals in Georgia healthy and insured.

Information on Georgia ’s Medicaid program and Indigent Care Trust Fund can be found under the heading “Issues and Programs,” which is located on the left hand side of the screen. You can access more information in a user friendly format with Georgia Health Partnership’s website listed below.

Georgia Health Partnership
The Georgia Health Partnership (GHP) is a state-of-the-art electronic health care administration system. This web site offers comprehensive information regarding Medicaid programs, search features for local physicians and much more. It provides information on: how to apply for Medicaid, eligibility requirements and lists the Medicaid benefits. Some areas of the site require an account set-up, and most non-member information is located in the "Directories" section.

PeachCare for Kids is a Children's Health Insurance Program for expanding coverage to children in low income families. It is not a Medicaid plan. The plan will pay for preventive services and acute medical care, as well as vision and dental care. Some of the services that PeachCare covers include check-ups and vaccines; vision care; dental care; emergency room treatment; hospitalization; prescription medicine; and care for chronic conditions like asthma or diabetes.

Right from the Start Medicaid
Based on family size and income, Right from the Start Medicaid provides medical assistance to pregnant women and to children ages 0 through 18 years. The RSM program provides Medicaid coverage for pregnant women and children under the age of 19. Income limits are higher than those of the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and Medically Needy programs. There is no asset test. Working families may be eligible even if both parents live in the home or if other insurance coverage is in place.