I’ve Enrolled in Medical Insurance, Now What?

Does anyone really know the ins and outs of their medical benefit plan? Probably not.

That’s okay. But it would be good to take a few moments to do two simple steps after enrolling.

First, you will need your ID Card and your insurance company’s member/customer services phone number.

PRO TIP: Save it in your phone as a contact [Insurance Company Name Customer Service] and if you have the space to put a description that isn’t part of the name (on iPhone's it is below in the notes section) I would HIGHLY recommend putting your ID number which is listed on your ID Card, your company’s plan number or group number which is sometimes used to identify you over the phone and anything else they ask you to verify who you are when you call.

If you want to know what you will be billed for before you receive the bill,

If you want to know what is free/covered in full or what you have to pay out-of-pocket,

If you want to save money on expenses,

Use this document, keep it with your benefits guide, bring it to your appointments, save it as a photo on your phone, etc.,

I also recommend setting a time with your Benefit's HR person at your company to ask them to explain your chosen plan to you because they often know waaaay more than you could ever know about the ins and outs of the plan.

Medical Insurance Plan Hacks

So you got your first job and have enrolled in your own medical insurance…or maybe you turned 26 and aren’t covered under your parents any longer….what does this even mean??

First, just know, you being here right now shows me you are interested in hacking the insurance game maximizing your medical benefit through your employer. You want to know what you don’t already know or know what to ask.

I’m here to help and I’m so excited to do so!

I’ve created a (completely free) little homework worksheet (below) for you to go into the year strong. But first, you will need your employer’s benefit guide and your ID Card on hand. You will want to do this right after receiving your ID card and after reviewing the guide.

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Turn your ID Card to the back and call the customer service line (or if it doesn’t have it, google your insurance company ((Anthem Blue Cross, Aetna, Kaiser, Cigna, etc.,) "and the words “customer service”).

You are going to call them and say, “I just enrolled in my employer sponsored medical plan through you and I want to ask a few questions about my coverage. I’m new to the [HMO, HSA, PPO] plan concept and want to learn so tell me anything and everything you think would be helpful.”

A few things to note: you may have been assigned a Primary Care Physician (PCP, your doctor) or you may not have. If you have, you will need to establish care before being referred to anything specialized (immunology, allergy, ortho, etc,).

This checklist walks you through the questions you can ask them and some bonus FAQs that I have received as the Benefits contact in my recent companies.

Hope this helps jump start your journey to understanding your medical benefits! Good luck!