Recent Articles
BCBSIL launches new payment channel for members to make a one-time “check by phone” or online EFT payment
On Monday, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) launched a new payment channel for members to make a one-time “check by phone” or online electronic funds transfer (EFT) payment. We have contracted with Alactriti, a third party vendor, to use their automated...
BCBSIL extends Obamacare payment deadline to January 30th, 2014
The parent company of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is extending the payment due date for health insurance plans that took effect on the first of the year to Jan. 30, the company said in a statement today. Chicago-based Health Care Service Corp., which also...
Deadline for Health Care Sign-Up Is Extended to December 24th, 2013
The White House has decided to allow an extra 24 hours for people to sign up for insurance on HealthCare.gov, through the end of the day Tuesday, to receive coverage beginning on Jan. 1, according to a senior official familiar with the change. The official deadline...
BCBSIL Announces Members Can Keep Their Existing Individual Polices
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois announced today that BCBSIL individual policyholders will be allowed to keep their existing policies.
What income and household information do I provide when I apply for Marketplace coverage?
If you want to find out if you qualify for lower costs on Marketplace coverage, you’ll need to provide information about your household members and income. The Marketplace application includes detailed instructions. It makes calculations using the information you...
Illinois Approves Extension of Canceled Plans
The state of Illinois has decided to give insurance companies the option to extend health insurance plans that were scheduled to be cancelled at the end of the year. It's estimated that nearly 200,000 Illinois residents have received cancellation letters in the mail...
IRS Changes to FSA “Use-it or Lose-it” Rule
This afternoon, the IRS and U.S. Department of Treasury have issued a n-13-71 modifying the healthcare flexible spending account (FSA)'s "Use-it or Lose-it" rule. Effective immediately, employers that offer FSA programs that do not include a grace period will have the...
Obamacare 2014 Plan Deadline Extended
The Obama administration confirmed to The Washington Post a little bit ago that it is indeed tweaking the way the individual mandate works as to not penalize anyone who purchases coverage during this first open enrollment period. It's not quite right to describe this...
Obamacare Illinois Rates Released
The federal department overseeing President Obama's health care overhaul has published a database of insurance plan rates for counties in 34 states, including the 102 in Illinois. The Quinn administration has declined to release such detailed information, which...
Small Employer Exchange Delayed
The Exchanges are scheduled to open this Tuesday, but regulators announced today that there will be some delays to the Small Business Health Options Program, also known as the SHOP Exchange. Employers with fewer than 50 employees are still expected to have the ability...