Maine Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Maine?

Maine was ranked #9 in the 2009 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation.

The good news:

• With 118 offenses per 100,000 population, the state's crime rate is the nation's best.
• The state's efforts to extend health coverage to its entire population appear to be paying off. Maine has the sixth best rate of coverage, with just 9.6 percent of its population lacking health insurance.
• Other good news? Public health funding is up from $51 to $61 per person from 2008, and smoking has decreased from 23.7 percent to 18.1 percent of the population over the past five years.

The bad news:

• The prevalence of obesity continues to rise, up from 25.2 percent to 25.8 percent of the Maine's population.
• Maine's continues to report one of the highest rates of cancer deaths; just seven states have worse rates.

The state's best and worst category rankings:

• Violent crime – #1
• Lack of health insurance – #6
• Geographic disparity – #7
• Primary care physicians – #10
• Infectious disease – #12
• Public health funding – #32
• Immunization coverage – #32
• Poor mental health days – #32
• Cancer deaths – #43

See the United Health Foundation's latest findings on Maine.

Does Maine have a risk pool for the uninsurable?

El estado de Maine no tiene la necesidad de ofrecer planes de cobertura para “grupos de alto riesgo.” El estado garantiza cobertura de seguro médico, es decir que los residentes de Maine tienen derecho a comprar seguro médico. No se le puede negar cobertura por su estado médico o edad. Sin embargo, es posible que se le imponga un periodo de espera de hasta 12 meses. Pero por ley, no le pueden cobrar más por su prima a resultado de su género o su estado de salud.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Starting in 2010, Maine will offer health coverage to residents through the federally established temporary high-risk pool program. To find out more about Maine's participation, click here.

Risk pools are state-sponsored programs to help people with a history of medical problems in their family to purchase coverage. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private market because of a pre-existing health condition. These programs can vary significantly from state to state in price, benefits and number of people served. Often insurance companies doing business in the state are required to contribute to the pool to keep it in the black. In the best cases, they allow people to be able to switch jobs or become self-employed without the fear of losing their health insurance coverage. Read more about risk pools here.

Cover The Uninsured's guide on finding health insurance in Maine

Cover The Uninsured is a national effort to highlight the fact that too many Americans are living without health insurance and to demand solutions from our nation's leaders. Read more information on its efforts. It is a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

• Cover The Uninsured's facts on the uninsured in Maine and all other states.
• Its guide on how to find health insurance in Maine.
• Materiales En Español – Guías para encontrar cobertura de seguro de salud.

Georgetown University's Guide to Health Insurance in Maine

Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute has researched and written state-by-state guides for finding and keeping health insurance. It updates these guides as federal and state policies change. A number of non-profit organizations help fund its research. Learn more about the Health Policy Institute.

Review Georgetown's guide for Maine.

USNews health insurance rankings for Maine

US News does an annual ranking of what it considers the best health insurance plans in each state. Visit its reports on various health insurance or medical insurance plans being offered in Maine.

Official State Goverment Sites with Maine Health Insurance Information

Department of Health and Human Services -- Page of links to health insurance information, provided by the state of Maine.

Maine's Consumer Guide to Individual Health Insurance -- guaranteed-issue individual health insurance is available in Maine from Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, MEGA Life & Health Insurance Company, and several health maintenance organizations (HMOs). This guide attempts to help you compare and contrast the options.