Health Insurance Resources

• "You First" Health Risk Assessment - www.youfirst.com/index.asp
  Health assessment gives tools to lower your risk and lengthen your life. Health risk assessments (HRAs) provide a scientific way of turning intuitive knowledge into measurable odds. Check out risk factors, death top ten by age group, health links. 

• The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is the lead agency charged with supporting research designed to improve the quality of health care, reduce its cost, and broaden access to essential services.

• Center on Budget and Policy Priorities - www.cbpp.org/shsh
  A private, nonprofit research and policy organization promoting free and low-cost health insurance for youth. Coordinates with new state child health insurance programs and Medicaid to ensure that children are not in danger of being left without coverage. 

• The Service Employees International Union is the nation. s largest healthcare union. This site details many of their activities in the healthcare arena.

• Federal Employees Health Benefit Plan gives current and valuable information to help you choose a health plan. This site offers extensive information on the health benefit plans offered to employees, beneficiaries and retirees of the Federal government. Participants are able to obtain information on the various plans offered as well as instructions for changing plans, filing claims, reporting fraud, and patients rights.

• HealthGradesTM - www.healthgrades.com
  An Internet service that grades the performance of health care providers in the U.S. HealthGradesTM provides comprehensive health care ratings and profiles to consumers to help them make the most informed decisions regarding their healthcare. 

• Medicare provides information about Medicare and the expanded health plan options with the creation Medicare+Choice. Information is available in English and Spanish.

• TRICARE Military Health System: TRICARE (formerly know as Champus) provides health care coverage for active and retired members of the Armed Forces, military families, and others entrusted to the care of the Department of Defense. This site contains information on the TRICARE benefits, resources, administration, etc. including current events affecting the military health system.

• The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations evaluates and accredits more than 18,000 health care organizations in the United States, including hospitals, health care networks, managed care organizations, and health care organizations that provide home care, long term care, behavioral health care, laboratory, and ambulatory care services. Their website has useful information about quality, making health care choices, and performance measurement. Performance reports on health care facilities can be accessed and downloaded.

• Money.com - www.money.com/money/101/lessons/17/topten.html
  Health insurance lesson. 

• The Foundation for Accountability provides a strong consumer focus on providing general information about health care quality and quality measurement. Their section "Educating Consumers About Health Care Quality" includes papers and articles on understanding health care quality and highlights national education efforts.

• The Pacific Business Group on Health provides practical and cutting edge information about how to use report cards and other indicators to select health plans and providers. It also has good information on health services in general and health and wellness benefits.

• OffspringMag.com - www.offspringmag.com/tools/health
  Health insurance calculator and more, from the "online magazine of smart parenting."

• The American Association of Retired Persons, now known formally as AARP, provides useful generic consumer information on managed care. Included in this site are a glossary of terms, checkpoints for comparing plans, descriptions of differences between traditional fee-for-service and managed care, and AARP principles on essential managed care plan features and services.

• SmartMoney.com  www.smartmoney.com/bestbuys/insurance/index.cfm?story=health News and information on health insurance issues, and links. 

• The Georgetown University Institute for Health Care Research and Policy produces high-quality research on a variety of health policy issues, including group health plan rights under ERISA and HIPAA. Their interactive section, entitled the "Home Page for Kassebaum-Kennedy Consumer Guides" provides geographical information about plan rights under ERISA/HIPAA for consumers.

• U.S. Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) - www.hipaa.hcfa.gov
  Includes information from HCFA about implementation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. 

• The Commonwealth Fund offers articles researched and written by experts in fields such as managed care quality, employer value-based purchasing, insurance and coverage, and women, children and minority health.

• Yahoo!/Health Insurance - www.health.yahoo.com/health/insweb.html
  Glossary, Health Plan Needs Analyzer FAQs, calculator. Coverage of Health Care debate and legislation, and more. 

• The Veterans Administration sponsors a telemedicine healthcare site dedicated towards improving access, coordination, continuity and outcomes for healthcare for veterans. Through the use of this electronic information and support, consumers are able to overcome distance and time.

• The Indian Health Service, an agency of US Public Health Service, provides information about healthcare services available to the general public and offers answers to questions and concerns regarding illness and protection.

• Sponsored by U. S. Public Health Service, this site includes a database and links to more than 1,000 federal agencies, publications and hundreds of government-screened private sector organizations related to women's health.

• The Employer Quality Partnership (EQP) provides help to consumers and employers about health care. This site offers advice on how to navigate the entire health care system whether its about questions for a doctor, determining a plan's value and/or choosing a plan.

• State Insurance Departments continue to regulate heath insurance issuers (e.g., insurance companies or HMOs) who sell group insurance to ERISA-covered group health plans, even under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the Mental Health Parity Act, and the Newborns and Mothers Health Protection Act. In addition, States continue to have responsibilities in individual insurance market (e.g., selling individual insurance policies). The National Association of Insurance Commissioners has created access to state websites with information on particular State Health Insurance Laws. You may also contact your State Insurance Commissioner for further information on particular State health insurance laws.

• The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Website also has materials concerning recently enacted federal health care laws. These materials include information on the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 (MHPA).