Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois - PPO

Illinois' Most Popular Health Insurance
Submit BCBSIL's Official Online Application

Our Comments on BCBSIL

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois provides Illinois' most popular health insurance products. Here's why:

Quality Benefits

BCBSIL health insurance plans tend to be more generous and subject to less severe limitations and exclusions.

In addition, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois PPO network is easily the most extensive in Illinois. BCBSIL members also get preferred access to Blue Cross and Blue Shield PPO providers in other states.

Rate Stability

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois individual health insurance products are offered at competitive prices. Many people are under the impression you have to pay a lot extra for BCBSIL protection. It's just not true.

In addition, through health insurance rate increases have become a permanent fixture of American life, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois premium adjustments tend to be more moderate. Correspondingly, BCBSIL policyholders maintain their policies longer than do policyholders of other health insurance companies.

A Powerful Combination

Superior Benefits + More Participating Providers + Competitive Rates = Powerful Health Insurance Products from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois.

A Mutual Insurance Company

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois is a division of Health Care Services Corporation (HCSC), a mutual insurance company. Because mutual insurance companies don't have to be concerned with Wall Street expectations, they can operate with a more long-term view -- which usually means greater stability for their policyholders.

Underwriting

All insurance companies have unique underwriting rules. A person rejected by one insurance company may have no problem obtaining coverage from another health insurer. It's no different with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois.

Our experience with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is that about 75% of applicants are able to obtain full coverage without extra exclusions included in the policy. As best we can tell, that's consistent with the overall health insurance industry.

However, there are several areas in which Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois underwriting tends to be more consumer-friendly:

Liberal guidelines on height/weight -- BCBSIL is likely to charge less for health people who are moderately overweight.
Decent rates for healthy smokers -- BCBSIL adds 25% to the rates of smokers. That's not bad compared to the extra charges assessed by many other health insurers.
Less use of medical condition-specific exclusion waivers -- Compared to most of the competition, BCBSIL is less likely to place special exclusions in your policy. This means superior outcomes for people with non-severe asthma and hypertension.

BCBSIL is also a preferred alternative for people being treated for moderate anxiety/depression -- as long as there hasn't been counseling in the last six months.

On the other hand, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois underwriting guidelines are definitely more conservative for nervous/mental health conditions requiring ongoing counseling and/or more than one medication. If this describes you, don't bother applying to BCBSIL.

Durational Rating

After you've been insured under Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois for a few years, your rate increases tend to escalate. This is know as "durational rating" and just about all health insurers do it to some extent.

However, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois allows existing policyholders to submit a "new business application" subject to medical underwriting. If the application is approved, the policyholder qualifies for competitive "new business" rates.

If you're a long-term BCBSIL policyholder in good health and you're concerned you're paying more than you have to, contact us about submitting a new business application.

The Application Process

The application process typically takes longer with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, but it's usually worth the wait.

For fastest BCBSIL results, use the Online Application, which, when compared to submitting an application through the mail, can reduce processing time by a week. A completely healthy person with a clean medical history may be approved within a couple days. A two-to-three week wait is more typical.

in reviewing applications, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois makes extensive use of phone interviews. This is a quick way to clarify applicant health information, and, perhaps most importantly, it minimizes the need for medical record review (which usually adds weeks to processing time).

Customer Service

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois certainly isn't perfect, but, compared to other health insurance companies, things tend to run more smoothly. Physician and hospital familiarity with BCBSIL administrative procedures has something to do with it.

In our view, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois customer service representatives tend to be more knowledgeable. Perhaps this is a consequence of the BCBSIL's size and stability. When you call BCBSIL, you're more likely to deal with someone who has meaningful job experience and sound training.

BCBSIL customer service phone wait times are typical of the industry. Things can get a little frustrating during peak call hours like Monday morning or Friday afternoon, but that hardly makes BCBSIL unusual.

Keep in mind that Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is a classic giant insurance bureaucracy. They're proficient at routine tasks, but one shouldn't expect speedy resolution involving complicated matters. In such circumstances, it helps to work with an experienced health insurance professional, who can be your consultant and advocate.