PALawHelp.org

Health Care Insurance Plans

Legal Information

This section of PALawHelp.org has information and resources about issues relating to Health Care Insurance Plans in Pennsylvania.

• PA Health Law Project Toll-Free Helpline - Call: 1-800-274-3258

  The PA Health Law Project provides free legal services and advocacy to Pennsylvanians having trouble accessing publicly funded health care coverage or services. For assistance, call the PHLP Helpline at 1-800-274-3258 or 1-866-236-6310 TTY or e-mail the PHLP at staff@phlp.org. Information from the PHLP is also available online at www.phlp.org. Read More

  By:

  Pennsylvania Health Law Project

• HealthCare.gov

  HealthCare.gov is a federal government Website managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services where you can get information on health care options that are available and sign up for health care benefits. Content Detail

  By:

  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

• Are you eligible to use the Marketplace?

  Information from HealthCare.gov about the requirements you must meet to be eligible to enroll in health insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace. Content Detail

  By:

  HealthCare.gov

• Health Insurance Marketplace - Healthcare.gov

  The new Health Insurance Marketplace helps uninsured people find health coverage. When you fill out the Marketplace application you will be told if you qualify for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or for a private health insurance plan. You will be able to compare your options and enroll in a plan right from this site. Content Detail

  By:

  Heatlhcare.gov

  Read this in:

  Spanish / Español

• Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator

  This tool from the Kaiser Family Foundation illustrates health insurance premiums and subsidies for people purchasing insurance on their own in new health insurance exchanges (or “Marketplaces”) created by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Read More

  By:

  Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation

  Read this in:

  Spanish / Español

• Health Reform Frequently Asked Questions

  Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Health Care Reform, obtaining health care and the Health Care Marketplace are provided by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Content Detail

  By:

  Kaiser Family Foundation

• Questions About Obamacare?

  This short Q & A from Community Legal Services of Philadelphia answers some basic questions about the new rules involving health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). [PDF] Content Detail

  By:

  Community Legal Services of Philadelphia

• The Affordable Care Act's New Patient's Bill of Rights

  Information from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the new Patient's Bill of Rights under the Affordable Care Act which will help children (and eventually all Americans) with pre-existing conditions gain coverage and keep it, protect all American's choice of doctors, and end lifetime limits on the care consumers may receive. These new protections apply to nearly all health insurance plans Content Detail

  By:

  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

• Understanding Health Insurance Terms

  This glossary from HealthCare.gov explains many of the terms you hear when reading about or discussing health care coverage. Content Detail

  By:

  HealthCare.gov

• Continuation of Health Coverage - COBRA

  Information from the United States Department of Labor about the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), a federal program that provides the right to continued health care coverage for people who lose their benefits under certain circumstances. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor

• Employee Benefits Security Administration

  Website of the Employee Benefits Security Administration. The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is committed to educating and assisting the 149 million workers, retirees and their families covered by approximately 685,000 private retirement plans, 2.2 million health plans, and similar numbers of other welfare benefit plans holding approximately $9.3 trillion in assets; as well as plan sponsors and members of the employee benefits community. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor

• Employee Retirement Income Security Act - ERISA

  The United States Department of Labor provides this introduction to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), which is a federal law that sets minimum standards for most voluntarily established pension and health plans in private industry to provide protection for individuals in these plans. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor

• Health Benefits Advisor

  The Health Benefits Advisor from the United States Department of Labor is designed to help workers and their families better understand employer and employee organization (such as a union) provided group health benefits and the laws that govern them, especially when they experience changes in their life and work situations--such as marriage, childbirth, job loss or retirement. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor

• Health Plans & Benefits

  Information on group health plans, which are employee welfare benefit plans established or maintained by an employer or by an employee organization (such as a union), or both, that provides medical care for participants or their dependents directly or through insurance, reimbursement, or otherwise. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor

• Portability of Health Coverage (HIPAA)

  Information from the United States Department of Labor on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This law provides rights and protections for participants and beneficiaries in group health plans. It includes protections for coverage under group health plans that limit exclusions for preexisting conditions; prohibit discrimination against employees and dependents based on their health status; and allow a special opportunity to enroll in a new plan to individuals in certain circumstances. HIPAA may also give you a right to purchase individual coverage if you have no group health plan coverage available, and have exhausted COBRA or other continuation coverage. Content Detail

  By:

  United States Department of Labor