Health Net vs Anthem Blue Cross: Which company is most popular..!
Health Net is a US-based health care insurance provider headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It is a Centene company that provides behavioral health, substance abuse, employee assistance, and other health care plans. It has over 7.3 million members across various states of the United States.
Anthem Inc. is a US-based health insurance company. It was founded in 2004 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Anthem is the largest managed health care company in the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. It operates as Anthem Blue Cross in California and has over 40 million members.
Here is a brief comparison between Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross:
Health Net vs. Anthem Blue Cross:
Types of Plans
Both Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross offer a wide range of HMO, PPO, and EPO plans in the three major segments of the marketplace. The HMOs offer you the cheaper price with in-network doctors and hospitals limitations. If you are an HMO recipient, you have to visit a doctor and hospital within the companies’ network.
The PPO plans are more expensive compared to other health care plans. A PPO plan allows members to see doctors and visit hospitals even outside their network. Moreover, members do not need a referral from their primary care physician.
An EPO or Exclusive Provider Organisation plan is like an HMO plan. It allows members to get services from in-network doctors, hospitals, and other health care providers. The company will not pay any coverage if you visit a doctor or hospital outside their local network.
Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross are tough competitors against each other in the three sectors of the marketplace –
- Individual and Family
- Small Business
- Senior (Medicare Supplement and Advantage Plans)
Individual and Family
Health Net focuses more on the HMO plans, whereas Anthem Blue Cross focuses on EPOs/PPOs. Both companies participate in the Covered California market. Health Net’s HMO plans are comparatively less expensive. However, their price is slightly higher than regional HMOs like Molina and LA Care. Although they have PPO and EPO plans, they do not perform well in their respective price segment.
In a given region, it has been observed that the competition is mainly between Blue Shield PPO and Blue Cross EPO. If you need more flexibility with the doctor and hospital networks, you should opt for PPO or EPO plans. Sometimes, Anthem EPOs are comparatively cheaper than other plans.
Small Business
Both the Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross are aggressive in the small business market segment. They compete with each other in terms of pricing and network. As mentioned earlier, Health Net is stronger in its HMO plans. They offer one of the lower-priced HMOs; however, they cannot beat Kaiser for its benefits. Moreover, if employees want local network doctors and save costs, Health Net HMO is the best option. On the contrary, Anthem Blue Cross is better in its PPO and EPO plans. Their price is better than Health Net’s PPO networks.
Medicare
The Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross are very aggressive in the Medicare market. Since Health Net is more robust in the HMO network, they focus more on the Medicare Advantage market. Health Net is fierce with the F plan for Medicare Supplement, whereas Anthem Blue Cross is aggressive with the G plan. However, you choose a carrier between the two based on network and pricing.
Health Net and Anthem Blue Cross have various benefits and robust health care plans. In some regions, Health Net HMO performs better, whereas, in the other areas, Anthem PPO/EPPO is the best. You should go through individual plans and decide on selecting the right one that meets your requirements.
Frequently Ask Questions:
Is Health Net PPO or HMO?
Health Net offers HMO, PPO, EPO, and HSP plans. Health Net of California, Inc. offers HMO and HSP plans, whereas Health Net Life Insurance Company provides PPOs and EPOs. A primary care physician deals with all your medical care in an HMO plan. If you want to see another doctor, you need a referral from your primary physician.
Is Anthem good health insurance?
Anthem scored 82.33 and ranked 8th in the 2020 Best Health Insurance Company Survey. For customer service, it scored 4th place, whereas it ranked 12th for its easy-to-use website and mobile apps. So, Anthem is a good insurance provider overall.
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