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Health care exchange deadlines approach

 
These two examples from the ProPublica Web application show that premiums aren’t the only factor to consider when buying insurance. Notice that while premiums are rising for both plans, the deductible and maximum out-of-pocket costs are going up for the BlueCare plan and down for the myCigna plan.
These two examples from the ProPublica Web application show that premiums aren’t the only factor to consider when buying insurance. Notice that while premiums are rising for both plans, the deductible and maximum out-of-pocket costs are going up for the BlueCare plan and down for the myCigna plan.
Published Dec. 12, 2014

Enrollment season for health insurance plans sold through the Affordable Care Act federal marketplace continues through Feb. 15. But if you want coverage to start Jan. 1, you've got just until Monday to pick a new plan.

Existing customers face a dilemma: If they don't pick a new plan by Monday, the federal government will automatically re-enroll them in their current policies. And that might come with surprises — some unpleasant.

In addition to possibly higher premiums to stay in their current plan, customers could also see other costs change, from deductibles to prescription costs.

That's why it's critical to shop for plans by looking at more than just premiums. A new Web application from ProPublica, the nonprofit investigative journalism site, makes that task easier by allowing you to compare year-to-year changes in a single plan, or to look at many plans' 2015 features.

Shown here as examples are two plans — one at the "silver'' coverage level, the other at the higher "gold'' level — how they look this year and how they look next year. We show the plans calculated for a Hillsborough County couple, both age 30, with two children. Go to projects.propublica.org/aca-enrollment to do your own comparisons and find out more about choosing a plan.