
Whether we're in Open Enrollment or out...one
questions comes up repeatedly.
How do I compare my Cobra to Covered
California?
Great question.
The answer might mean $1000's in premium.
That's not the whole story however.
Doctors might be different.
Medications might be different.
And of course,
Benefits WILL be different.
Let's walk through the key takeaways to open
up more questions.
Feel free to run your instant Covered Ca quote with tax credits here:

You can always call 800-320-6269 to go
through your situation. Our services are free to
you.
Covered Ca versus Cobra Cost
First, we'll look at the main reason people
call to begin with...
Cobra is expensive!
It's not unusual to get calls from people
where their Cobra is over $2000/month for a
family.
That's crazy.
We'll try to simplify the cost situation but
keep in mind that the actual comparison gets
more complicated.
Let's simplify.
Do you qualify for a Covered Ca tax
credit?
This is everything now.
The tax credit is where we can quickly find
$1000's in savings versus Cobra.
So...how does it work?
It's primarily based on income.
The tax credit is determined by:
- Best estimate if this year's Adjusted
Gross Income (line 37 on the 1040)
- # of household members (all those that
fire together on 1040 tax form)
- Basic census info (age and zip code)
There are some lesser qualifiers but those
are the key points. We can help you with the
rest.
See what type of tax credit you might be eligible for based on the criteria
above here:

Call 800-320-6269 to find out how to
calculate income
Look at the levels below...if you're income
is in the range, call us immediately.
We'll figure out the other pieces.
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Here's the deal...if you're eligible for a
tax credit (especially a big one), Covered Ca
may be a no-brainer.
We'll discuss the trade-offs later.
What if you're not eligible for a tax
credit?
It depends.
Cobra generally is very expensive so the
question is...can we beat the cost with a
Covered Ca option?
Maybe.
First, we look to find the closest equivalent
to your Cobra option.
It won't be apples and apples but focus on
these items:
- deductible amounts
- max out of pockets
- are there copays for office/rx
We can really compare them at 800-320-6269 at
no cost to you.
How is the Covered Ca priced when compared
to your Cobra option?
That's our first comparison.
But not our last.
We can actually go down from there...all the
way down to a...
high deductible HSA plan!
Why would we want that after having rich
group benefits?
Savings.
Let's say we go from a $1000 deductible to
a $4500 deductible with no copays.
That doesn't sound great.
Now let's say we'll save $200/month in
premium.
Hmmmmm
That's almost $2500 savings versus $3500
different in deductible.
That's not a bad trade off at all especially
if you're in good health.
It's not always easy to see these trade offs
unless you're in health insurance all day long.
We are. Call 800-320-6269 to compare all
the options to Cobra in 5 minutes.
The HSA is a whole other conversation if you
are in a higher tax bracket and we're happy to
explain how it works.
So, besides cost, how do we compare Cobra
and Covered Ca?
Doctor Networks between Cobra and Covered Ca
Outside of costs, this is probably the
biggest consideration now.
Why?
The new individual/family (includes Covered
Ca) networks are smaller.
By about 1/3 the size for doctors and
approximately 10% for hospitals.
Keep in mind, this is true for all individual
family plans whether through Covered Ca or
direct with the carrier.
There's no way to avoid this.
What about the Cobra plan networks?
Cobra will use the network of the original
group health plan.
These are typically the old larger networks for most
health plans.
Watch out though, there's been a big push
recently in so-called narrow networks for group
plans.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Kaiser is Kaiser. There is
no network difference between Cobra and Covered
Ca.
So what should we do if Covered Ca is cheaper
than Cobra?
Call your doctors. Ask them what "Covered
Ca" plans they take.
The doctor offices all know this "branding"
by
now.
When you run your quote, doctor search will be available for each plan
here:

You can also email us your doctor/cities to
help@calhealth.net We can check their status
for you!
There's no cost for our services as
Certified Covered California Agents.
What about Cobra versus Covered California
for RX
This is the other consideration along with
doctor networks.
The formulary list of drugs is different
between group plans (Cobra) and individual
family plans (Covered Ca).
The formulary is smaller on Covered
California plans so if you have medications
now, check with us first.
We have the formularies available for each of
the major carriers to research this question
before.
Call 800-320-6269 to understand this concern
So, what should we do between Cobra and
Covered Ca?
As you can see, lots of moving pieces.
How do we analyze all this?
First, we're here to help. We can quickly
analyze your situation to find the best value.
Here's the key take-away...
Cobra is usually ridiculously expensive!
Forget that most people eligible for Cobra
are losing group health coverage or starting
their own business.
It's not unusual to see Cobra coverage
running $1500-2K for a family of 4.
This makes no sense in most cases.
There are two ways to beat this option
(barring the network issue).
First, look at the closest equivalent plan.
Most of the group plans have switched over
to the new ACA metallic levels (bronze, silver,
gold, and platinum).
This makes the comparison easy.
By law, the plans can't differ more than 2%
at a given benefit level.
There may be a better option however.
We recommend looking at a downgrade option as
the premium difference may more than offset the
benefit difference.
For example, if we add a $2250 deductible but
save $1800 in premium, that's not bad.
For insurance, that's actually really
good.
This is where 15 years of experience with
this type of comparison cans save you hours and
1000's of dollars.

The take away is this.
Cobra is really expensive and you might not
be able to change plans.
Covered California can be priced much lower
and you can change plans.
Most importantly....
If you qualify for a Covered Ca tax
credit, it's hard to justify paying full premium
for Cobra.
Again, our services as Certified Covered
California agents is free to you.
Call us at 800-320-6269 to look at your
situation.
One note...losing group health insurance is
a qualified Special Enrollment trigger.
This means we can enroll any time of the
year (even outside Open Enrollment)
We can get the 1st of the month following
application submission.
If you elect Cobra, we then have to wait for
Open Enrollment.
Call 800-320-6269 for any questions on
which option is best for your situation. Our
services are free to you!
You can run your
Covered
California health
plan Quote here
to view rates and plans side by side from the major carriers...Free.