Under the new Affordable Care Act, all major medical health plans for small groups and individuals will be designated as a bronze, silver, gold, or platinum plan. Each “metal plan” refers to the plans’ level of actuarial value. The four metal plans were designed to make it easy for consumers to compare plans with similar benefits, including premiums, networks, deductibles, and other factors.
A plan’s actuarial value, in short, is the percentage of total average costs of coverage throughout a given year.
A Bronze Plan’s actuarial value is 60%
A Silver Plan’s actuarial value is 70%
A Gold Plan’s actuarial value is 80%
A Platinum Plan’s actuarial value is 90%
So, for example, under a gold plan, it would cover around 80% of the costs of your health care in a given year and the insured would be responsible for the other 20%.
Insurer’s also have the option to offer a catastrophic-only plan for eligible individuals, but these feature higher cost-sharing than any of the four metal plans.
If you have any questions about health insurance plans or would like a free quote comparison, please feel free to give us a call at 1-800-571-2980. You can also reach us by e-mail at Info@terminsurancebrokers.com 24 hours a day.