Maine Health Insurance

Maine is one of the few states that impose very strict guidelines for its insurance companies. The state has attempted to reform the insurance industry, making Maine health insurance accessible to all residents, regardless of their current health status or income level. Many believe that while the intentions of the standards are commendable, the regulations make searching for Maine health insurance a bit more challenging.

Maine Health Insurance Rules

Maine health insurance regulations differ from most states in the fact that no insurance company is permitted to deny coverage to an individual or group due to any health condition.

There are also regulations in place that control the variance of premiums due to specific criteria, such as gender and overall health. While this has served to qualify more people for insurance policies, it has driven up the base costs for premiums and caused many companies to remove themselves from the Maine health insurance market all together.

Maine attempted to combat this problem by instituting a voluntary state run insurance program for uninsured individuals. DirigoChoice was available for those who work for small businesses who do not offer plans, individuals who do not have at-work access to health insurance, and the self-employed. Funding for this program dropped in 2006 and enrollment was closed to new members; however, those with existing policies were allowed to remain with the program.

Affordable Maine Medical Insurance

Maine does offer some alternatives to standard health insurance for those who are facing financial challenges that keep them from affording private or group health insurance. Here’s your options for affordable health care within the Pine Tree state;

MaineCare is the Maine Medicaid program, in place to assist low-income families with obtaining proper health care. Coverage is available for children, parents, and certain other qualifying adults that fall within specific income guidelines. These plans offer complete Maine health insurance coverage for those who qualify for the program.
CubCare is another state run insurance program for low-income children who do not qualify for Medicaid. The income levels for this program are slightly higher than for Medicaid, but access is not available for those older than 19 years of age. In some cases, there may be a premium for this Maine health insurance program, but this is on a sliding scale, based on the household income. Information on who is eligible and what is covered by the plans is available at the MaineCare website .

Maine Individual Health Insurance

For those who are not eligible for Maine health insurance state programs and do not have access to group benefits through an employer, finding individual coverage is the only option. While this can take some work and investigation, there are a few online resources that can help to compare the different plans available:

Maine Guide To Health Care at www.mainecahc.org
- Information on insurance coverage and other health concerns
Maine Bureau of Insurance
- Provides comparison tools, information about consumer rights and advice on selecting insurance policies