The truth about Co-Ops and Health Insurance

I was watching "Meet the Press" this weekend and saw the comment about doing away with the public option concerning Government based Health Care. The comment was made that "if co-ops are created hopefully they won't kick the sick people off like private insurance does". I wanted to stand up and scream at the television. Private Insurance companies canNOT "kick" people off thier plans except in instances of fraud or non-payment. Period. Once you get approved for private health insurance, and, no, it's NOT easy to get approved, the insurance company is on the hook to you for millions of dollars of benefits.
The dirty little secret is that if you get your health insurance through a co-operative (and they certainly DO exist) you can be cancelled for high claims or illness. The best part is that if you read the fine print, the co-op can raise your rates every 30 days in writing with no appeal process. So will they cancel you? They can. But it will be much easier if your rates keep going up every 30 days until YOU drop the policy because you can't afford it. Then the decision to leave was your decision not thiers.
Talk to your agent. If they are able to offer you what looks to be the same coverage for signifigantly less than other agents, ask yourself WHY? Most co-op agents that I know don't realize the policies they are selling aren't what they appear to be. They think they are the traditional health insurance that you and I expect. They aren't trying to pull a fast one on anyone. They are selling the product they are told to sell. The problem comes in when you don't know the fine print of what you are selling.
If you get cancelled or have to drop a co-op plan you have no other alternatives insurance wise except going on a group plan or enrolling in something like a limited benefit plan. A plan like that will pay you X amount of dollars when you go to the Doctor instead of paying on claim balance. They are something you can do to slow the bleeding but they have annual limits on how much they pay and should never be your first option.
Traditional health insurance is out there and can be made affordable for most Americans. There are things you can do to lower your rates and increase coverage if you will take the time to talk to your agent.