Do you know what preventive services are free?

Health care reform - otherwise known as the Affordable Care Act - gives you the right to access certain preventive medical services with no cost-sharing, including co-pays or coinsurance even if you haven't met your deductible.

The list of free services includes immunizations, cancer screenings, depression screening and much, much more. See the full list at Healthcare.gov. There's also specific services covered for women and even for children.

If you've been charged for a preventive service that you believe should've been free, give our health insurance experts a call at 1-800-562-6900 or email us at askmike@oic.wa.gov

We've heard from some consumers who have had their free colonoscopy, but were later charged for the removal and testing of a polyp. Recent guidelines from the federal government should protect you from these charges, but if you have concerns, please contact us. We'll help you understand your rights to these services and others.

Are you ready for a megaquake?

Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) ran a series of stories earlier this month about how prepared Northwesterners are for a massive earthquake (or not, in many cases). Some experts say a magnitude 9.0 quake off our coast could hit at anytime. OPB profiled a series of families who tried living off their earthquake supplies for a weekend to as a trial run. The Red Cross recommends storing 14 gallons of water and 42 meals per person in the event of a megaquake. That’s a lot of supplies. 

Photo courtesy of FEMA. A sports car lies crushed by earthquake debris in a Seattle parking lot in Seattle on March 4, 2001.

In addition to being prepared for the disaster itself, homeowners should be prepared for the aftermath. Step one is talking to your insurance agent about what your policies will cover. Earthquakes are not automatically covered by a standard homeowner’s policy, most insurers require an endorsement or a separate policy. And you likely won’t be able to buy it after the fact, most insurers don’t sell it for a period of time after an earthquake hits. Additionally, it typically doesn’t cover tidal waves or tsunamis that are a direct result of an earthquake, but be sure to read your policy and talk to your insurance agent.

While you are preparing for an earthquake—or wildfire or any other natural disaster—make sure you include insurance in your planning.

• Take a look at the OPB series, Unprepared: Will we be ready for the Megaquake?
• Read about earthquake insurance. 
• Find resources for natural disasters. 

Questions? You can contact our consumer advocates online or at 1-800-562-6900.

Help the OIC improve health insurance webpages

We need your help refining the information we provide on the individuals and families section of our health insurance webpages. 

You can help by taking a short survey by May 28. It takes less than 15 minutes to complete and your responses are anonymous.

We will use your feedback to improve the way the information on the pages is organized, so it is more user-friendly and easy to navigate.

Thanks for your participation!

OIC hiring two entry-level insurance positions in Tumwater

The Office of the Insurance Commissioner is hiring two entry-level positions atour Tumwater headquarters to help consumers with insurance.

• Insurance Technician 1: This is in our Consumer Protection Division and answers calls on our consumer hotline. This position triages calls to consumer advocacy, producer licensing and Statewide Health Insurance Benefits Advisors (SHIBA), explains basic insurance rules and helps consumers and industry users troubleshoot problems with our online applications. 
• Health Insurance Advisor 1: This is in our Statewide Health Insurance Benefits Advisors (SHIBA) program and is a temporary job through December 2015. This position counsels consumers in person and on the phone about health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, including screening them for eligibility and enrolling them in subsidized programs. The person in this position delivers presentations to community groups, trains volunteers and attends monthly meetings around the state. 

Find more information about these jobs and other openings at http://bit.ly/OICjobs

OIC wants your help to make our website more user-friendly!

Now that open enrollment is over, we want to fine-tune the individuals and families section of our health insurance webpages. 

You can help by taking a short survey. It takes less than 15 minutes to complete and your responses are anonymous. We will use your feedback to better organize the information that we provide to consumers. The survey is open until May 19.

Thanks for your help making our website easier to use!