Health Plan Evaluator
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Our Health Plan Evaluator helps you sort through your priorities and determine which of several health insurance plans is best for you. The Evaluator recognizes that the lines between different types of Health Insurance Policies have blurred. The best way to compare plans is feature by feature, side-by-side.
How Our Health Plan Evaluator Works
The Evaluator lists each of the most common features of a health insurance plan.
It allows you to determine how important each feature is to you. Importance is preset according to our understanding of the importance of each feature for a person with your primary health condition. If you hold your cursor over the symbol, you'll see why we gave the feature the rating we did. Change the rating to your own priorities.
The Evaluator provides a standard to help you rate each feature you care about. The key is about how the plans compare to each other - not to the guide.
The Evaluator allows you to only compare the features that are most important to you. The more features you compare, the more accurate the result will be. The Evaluator will provide a running total of the features you choose. It's the comparison of the totals that counts, not the absolute totals. For example:
| Plan 1 | Plan 2 | Plan 3 | |
| Example A: Total | 7 | 11 | 3 |
| Example B: Total | 70 | 83 | 91 |
In Example A, Plan #2 is likely best for you. In Example B, it's Plan #3.
If you log in, your work will automatically be saved on your Individual Home Page.
Don't Rely Solely On The Totals
Even though the Evaluator is designed to give you a reasoned recommendation, it is only a tool. When you compare totals, it is wise to ask yourself: is the result as you expected, based on your overall impressions of the plan? If so, you've probably found the best plan for you. If not, review your answers, especially the importance ratings of various features. Discuss your questions with an unbiased professional, such as a health insurance broker, an employee assistance person or a person in Human Resources.
Before You Get Started
Gather together information about each of the policies you are considering.
- You need at least enough information about each plan to be able to compare the features you care about.
- If you only have sales brochures, check the web site of each plan you're considering, call the insurer's member services department or contact your employer's benefit manager for copies of policies or plan descriptions. If you are given answers orally, ask for confirmation in writing.
When you think about your needs, include services you are likely to need as well as the needs of any other people who will be covered through your insurance. If one policy doesn't cover the needs of all people in your family, consider the possibility of obtaining more than one policy. For example, one spouse could have coverage through work while the other has an individual policy, or both spouses could be covered at their places of work.
As you use the Evaluator, you may decide that previous ratings you entered should be changed. You can go back and change them as many times as you like.
Take your time. You can always save what you've done and come back when you're feeling fresher, or obtain more answers.
If working on this chart raises emotional issues, log in if you haven't already and save your work to your Individual Home Page. You can return to it when you're feeling fresher.
Please share how this information is useful to you.
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