Maine Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Maine?

Maine has the least violent crime in the nation, and is one of the best states in providing prenatal care and health insurance for its citizens.

In a look at 20 categories affecting health, Maine has no entries in the bottom ten and few in the bottom 25 of all states. It has an overall rank of being the seventh healthiest state in which to live, according to the health care foundation which determines the rankings.

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

Does Maine have a risk pool for the uninsurable?

Maine does not need a risk pool -- it has guaranteed-issue health insurance, which means you are guaranteed the right to buy Health Insurance. You cannot be turned down because of health status or age. However, a pre-existing condition waiting period of up to 12 months may be imposed. You can not be charged a higher premium because of your gender or health status.

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 poolto 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. Find more on 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.
• 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 contribute to funding its research. Find more on the Health Policy Institute.

• Georgetown's guide for Maine.

News headlines on Maine health insurance

Find the most recent headlines on health insurance in Maine at Google News or Yahoo News.

Want single-payer health care? Concerned about the uninsured?
Contact your elected officials about health care issues

Contact your federal officials. Phone calls are best. Faxes are good, too. Since 9-11 postal mail creates long delays, and many members of Congress simply do not take e-mail seriously -- however, since e-mail is so easy it doesn't hurt to do that, too. Members of the Senate and Congress will usually ignore any correspondence that is not from their district, so its not desirable to blanket e-mail them (this type of abuse is why many do not view it favorably). The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a guide on how to contact your elected officials, including a valuable list of dos and dont's.

• Contact the White House
  Phone: toll free 1-800-671-7887 (ask for the Comment Line)
  FAX: 1 202-456-2461 (fax)
  E-mail:comments@whitehouse.gov
  
  
• Find contact information on your U.S. Representative
  Locate by using your ZIP Code
  Or if you know who your representative is, simply call the Capitol Switchboard toll-free at 1-800-962-3524

• Senator Susan Collins
  PHONE: 202-224-2523 (DC office)
  FAX: 202-224-2693 (DC office)
  Local offices
  Contact by E-mail

• Senator Olympia Snowe
  PHONE: 202-224-5344 (DC office)
  FAX: 202-224-224-1946 (DC office)
  Local offices
  Contact by E-mail
  
  

Contact your state officials:

• Maine Governor John Baldacci
  #1 State House Station
  Augusta, ME 04333-0001
  PHONE: 207-287-3531
  FAX: 207-287-1034
  Contact by e-mail
  
  
  
• Contact your Maine State Senator
• Contact your Maine State Representative

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.