Maine Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Maine?

Maine may have dropped two spots in the 2008 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation, but at #7 in this year's study, it's still a great place to live for many reasons.

The good news:

• Violent crime? What violent crime? With 118 offenses per 100,000 population, the state's crime rate is one-third the national average (467 per 100,000).
• The state also earned good marks for its infectious disease rate, the 10th best in the nation.
• The state's efforts to extend health coverage to its entire population appear to be paying off. Maine has the fifth best rate of coverage, with just 9 percent of its population lacking health insurance – and that percent has dropped from 10.6 percent in the past five years.
• Other positives include a declining rate of cardiovascular disease – from 408 to 265.3 deaths per 100,000 population since 1990.

The bad news:

• The prevalence of obesity was on the rise from 2007 to 2008, up from 23.1 to 25.2 percent of the Maine's population.
• Numbers showed that the percentage of Maine's children in poverty also climbed to 14.4 percent in 2008 – up from 13.2 in 2007.
• Maine's population also exhibits a high rate of cancer deaths; just six states have worse rates.
• Immunization coverage fell again in 2008, with 77.6 percent of children ages 19 to 35 months receiving their recommended immunizations. That percentage is down slightly from 2007 (79.8 percent) continuing a drop since 2003, when 80.7 percent of children had coverage.

The state's best and worst category rankings:

• Violent crime – 1st
• Lack of health insurance – 5th
• Infectious disease – 10th
• Immunization coverage – 40th
• Cancer deaths – 44th

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.

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.

Mini-meds a guaranteed-issue option for those who are medically uninsurable

An option for the medically uninsurable is a guaranteed-issue mini-med health insurance plan. There is no underwriting and no health questions are asked.

These plans provide basic coverage but are not designed to help with catastrophic expenses. They can often count as creditable coverage, eliminating the waiting period for pre-existing conditions if you later move to an employer-based plan. Read more 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.

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.