Posted on Thursday, April 9, 2015

Helpful Health Care Links: April 9, 2015

Our helpful health care links focus on two hot topics in health insurance this week– The first insurance company to pair with a fitness tracker to provide discounts for healthy behavior and a reminder that your health insurance could affect your tax forms. Both are worth your time. And, as always, if you ever come across a healthcare story that you think merits more attention, please send it our way!

Giving Out Private Data For Discount In Insurance

John Hancock will become the first insurance company to offer a program for Americans that tracks policyholders’ medical information and offers discounts for healthy behavior.

Tax Deadline Meets The Health Law

If you were insured through work, bought a plan on the new insurance marketplaces or enrolled in Medicare Part A, Medicaid or Tricare you likely met the requirement and can simply check that box off on your tax form.

P.S.–TIME IS RUNNING OUT!

ObamaCare has added an extra enrollment period that will take place from March 15 – April 30, 2015.

Spin your healthcare your way and check out our Easy Healthcare eBook Guides.

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HealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Choose Your Health Insurance gives you the practical steps you can take to choose the right insurance plan for you and your family.

Posted on Thursday, April 2, 2015

3 Steps To Follow If Your Health Information Is Hacked

We know that our health information is supposed to be kept private, but we are also aware that many institutions are experiencing breaches of some kind. So what do you do if this happens to you? This video shares three simple steps to follow if this happens to you!

Tell us whether you are concerned about you health information being compromised. We’d love to hear from you!

For more information about your health privacy, see HealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Healthcare Privacy.

As Always, we hope we’re helping you “Spin Your Healthcare Your Way!

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P.S.–Please remember that ObamaCare has added an extra enrollment period that from March 15 – April 30, 2015. For more information about your health insurance, see HealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Choosing Your Health Insurance

Posted on Monday, March 30, 2015

Is Your Health Information Being Hacked?

The short answer is “yes – it’s likely.” This was the discussion I had last week with my daughter. After the major Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance data breach among others, many people are concerned.

My daughter, who just started a new job, got a notice from her employer that she was one of the 80 million people who had their health information hacked in February of this year. She was understandably very concerned.

So what should you do when you become aware that your information is hacked?

If you notice something suspicious, notify your healthcare provider or insurance company immediately.
If your healthcare provider or insurance company tells you your information has been compromised, it’s likely that they will provide you with identity theft coverage. If not, ask for it.
Monitor your financial information and immediately report any strange charges.

In the case of the Anthem BCBS breach, BCBS provided 2 years of identity theft repair assistance, credit monitoring, and identity theft insurance to all the people affected by the breach.

One of the areas to pay attention to is your tax returns. For some of the BCBS customers who were hacked, the hackers filed fraudulent tax returns using the stolen information. When the person went to file their taxes, they were informed that they had already filed and received a refund.

Tell us whether you are concerned about hacking of your health information. We’d love to hear from you!

For more information about your health insurance, see HealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Choosing Your Health Insurance.

For more information about your health privacy, see HealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Healthcare Privacy.

We hope we’re helping you “Spin Your Healthcare Your Way!