In today's market (1/26/2009) Aetna offer's the best overall value of any carrier in Georgia.
Of course, that can all change.
Aetna's underwriting can be the most onerous in some ways and flexible in others. I have a reasonably good offer rate for applications submitted through my office. This is mostly due to the extensive pre-screening I do. Even still, about 10% of applications submitted through my office are declined.
Those who submit direct to Aetna typically experience a significantly higher rejection rate.
Aetna has some of the best HSA plans on the market.
The also have some plans that leave much to be desired, such as the Preventive and Hospital Care plan and the Open Value 10,000.
Customer service is good but not great. It takes way too long to issue a policy . . . usually 2 months.
The good news is, you can go online withing 24 hours of approval to review benefits, locate providers and print ID cards.
You can also call their customer service line at 1-800-MY-HEALTH.
New business underwriting normally takes 10 business days but can sometime move a bit quicker.
The only real complaints clients have about Aetna involve billing and the way medications are handled.
Aetna's billing practices are among the worst. Sometimes it takes them 3 months to collect the initial premium. Other times they may forget to bill for 60 days or longer.
A new Aetna "member" is advised to have their doctor contact Aetna to get approval on existing medications. If you don't you may end up paying more for refills than is necessary.
In spite of the issues, Aetna is a major player in today's market.
You can run Aetna quotes by clicking this link.
You can compare Aetna against other plans by clicking through to Georgia Insurance Shop.
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2 comments:
I am an Aetna insured professional w family. They also manage our FSA accounts. Their website for managing claims is good. You can find and print EOBs and generally keep track of the claims process. The bad news is that you need to because their "error rate" is high. Like many insurance companies today they will deny your claim by default and make you followup/fight to obtain even basic benefits. My most recent experience is when they denied coverage of a basic well-care visit for my 6 year old daughter because apparently we waited only 359 days and not 365 days between appointments. I feel great sympathy for anyone truly ill and trying to get coverage from Aetna.
BWC
Sounds like they are following the letter of the contract. That is what they are supposed to do (and so are other carriers as well).
My issue with them is more along the line of general policyholder service which has room for improvement.
So far I have not encountered issues on claim adjudication. If it comes up, I can rely on my 30+ yrs in dealing with carriers on claim issues to help in fighting for my clients.
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