Online tool provides individual health insurance rates

The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner built a new online tool to help consumers find out what health care plans will cost next year. Simply click on the map provided online and it will tell you which insurance carriers offer coverage in your area. A link is provided for each company to see its rates, which vary based on your age, area of residence and other factors.

The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner built a new online tool to help consumers find out what health care plans will cost next year. Simply click on the map provided online and it will tell you which insurance carriers offer coverage in your area. A link is provided for each company to see its rates, which vary based on your age, area of residence and other factors.

There are a couple caveats. These rates are mainly for the individual market, meaning people who have to buy insurance for themselves, and don’t get it through an employer, Medicare, etc.

Also, the rates do factor in the subsidies that will be available to some people. Those subsidies will reduce the cost of coverage substantially for many people. You can estimate how much you’ll pay, with subsidies taken into account, by using an online calculator from the Washington HealthPlanFinder.

Lastly, the list of health plans is likely to grow over the next couple of months. The insurance commissioner is still reviewing plans, for example, for multiple insurance carriers that have filed to sell coverage outside the state exchange. And some plans that were rejected for the exchange have filed appeals. More information will be made available in the near future.