The Austin health insurance market is actually quite large, with 3/4 of a million residents and about six good health insurance companies to choose from.
We recommend click on the button above to get your own, personalized Austin health insurance quote, and reading my brief overview of the different companies available in Austin.
The Austin Health Insurance Market
I have highlighted the six main companies in my research into Austin’s health insurance market, including Aetna, AARP, Cigna, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Humana One, and a small HMO called Scott & White which looks not only affordable but extremely benefit rich and is a nonprofit company. But they are an HMO, so if you prefer PPO plans you will want to disregard Scott & White.
Scott & White is closely affiliated with its sponsoring organizations, Scott & White Clinic and Medical Center. The Scott & White network includes over 1,600 providers and 27 hospitals in the central Texas area, but is not nearly as big as Blue Cross, for example. I will tell you that you will have less out pocket with Scott & White and that they are easily the best bargain in Austin.
The next two companies that I found were Humana and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, both of which offer a $2,500 deductible plan with office and visits and prescription coverage at premium within $10 of one another. For a 34 year old male in Austin, Humana charges $147 per month, and Blue Cross charges $156 for a $2,500 deductible. Which company is better? Either one is fine, but the Humana plan offers a lower out of pocket maximum per year (by $500). Still, Blue Cross has a slightly better nationwide network.
If you are over 55, however, then the answer is simple: AARP all the way. AARP is underwritten by Aetna in Austin and is not only affordable and benefit rich, but has a much more lax underwriting standard then anyone else. Aetna also offers a great plan with a decent premium in this range, with great benefits for $177 per month.
The last two companies are Cigna and UnitedHealthOne, winning the unfortunate award for offering the least amount of health insurance for the most money in Austin – both at $191. UnitedHealthcare is slowly tanking as a company, with many of their individual plans receiving negative feedback from members. Cigna is a fairly new entrant to the market (2009 was their first year) and is pretty competitive in other demographics.
Your best bet? Run your own Austin health insurance quote now to see which plan is the most affordable for you.
