Blue Shield Medical Insurance

Blue Shield of California offers range of individual and family medical insurance plans to fit any lifestyle and any budget. There are two type of medical coverage PPO (preferred provider organization) and HMO (health maintenance organization). With PPO you will have greater flexibility when it comes to choosing your own doctor. PPO plans tend to cost less than HMO plans. With HMO plans you will have smaller copays and predictable expenses when you use medical services.

Blue Shield medical insurance in California is known as Blue Shield of California. Blue Shield of California, was created by the California Medical Association on December 18, 1938, and was incorporated on February 2, 1939. The organization began offering medical insurance on March 6 of that same year. In 1946, the organization was among a founder of the National Association of Blue Shield medical insurance, which later became the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Today, Blue Shield of California is an independent licensee of the national association.

The Blue Shield of California health plan was the first in the nation to offer catastrophic coverage in 1950, provide coverage for a heart transplant in 1984, offer online benefit and enrollment information in 1996, and offer an online enrollment system for agents in 1998. In 2006, the National Committee for Quality Assurance, commonly referred to as NCQA, recognized Blue Shield as an "excellent" health plan for service and clinical quality.

Blue Shield provides you with access to quality healthcare at affordable prices. Blue Shield helps you stay healthy and saves you money. How? Blue Shield medical insurance has put together a network of healthcare providers throughout California. These providers are all highly qualified professionals who've agreed to partner with Blue Shield. Members of these HMO health insurance plans can choose from over 25,000 doctors and 280 hospitals in California. Members of the PPO health insurance plans can take advantage of a network of more than 45,000 doctors and 350 hospitals.

By negotiating with the doctors and hospitals, Blue Shield is able to keep costs for its members affordable. The plans feature, copayments as low as $20 when you visit your doctor, copayments as low as $35 when you visit a medical specialist. Flexible deductibles and some plans have no deductible, and some plans are compatible with Health Savings Accounts. These plans keep you healthy by stressing preventive care. With visits to the doctor made affordable, you'll be able to get care early and often. This prevents illnesses and injuries from becoming serious medical problems.

What exactly is preventive care? It includes basic healthcare services like routine physicals, immunizations, OB/GYN exams, and baby care. And in many Blue Shield medical insurance plans, these services are covered before you meet the deductible. Blue Shield understands everyone has different healthcare needs. That's why they've put together a variety of plans so everyone can get healthcare that meets their medical and financial requirements.

Blue Shield medical insurance has many plan options to choose from:

With all the plans available, it can be hard to decide which one is the best plan for you. Fortunately, Blue Shield medical insurance can help you make sense of your healthcare needs and find you a coverage that will keep you insurance without putting a huge dent in your wallet. With Blue Shield you can always change your health plans in the future, might require medical underwriting.