Obamacare News Blog

You’ve Got Tonik Blue Cross Health Insurance in CA…Now What?

Now that you’re forking money over every month for your Tonik health insurance, you might as well take advantage of the services available to you.  Tonik Plans are underwritten by Anthem Blue Cross of California and that’s a good thing. Blue Cross is California’s largest health insurance provider, which has bargaining power and a ton of great services. Here are some tips to get the most out of your plan:

1) Stay in the Anthem Blue Cross PPO Network.

That’s the trick to keeping your costs down. Anthem Blue Cross has a huge network of doctors and hospitals and if you use the Blue Cross Network, your cost will be way lower. So know before you go. Click here to find a Tonik doctor in your network. Search under PPO (formerly know as Prudent Buyer) Network.

2) Join a Gym.

Why not? You will get a discount by being part of the Blue Cross family. Visit Healthy Extensions section to find Jenny Craig, LASIK and Teeth Whitening discounts. If you are already in shape, have perfect vision and pearly white teeth, send us your photo and move on to step 3.

3) Get a Healthy Check.

It’s kind of like a mini physical. You can get a Healthy Check once a year for 25 to 75 bucks. This link will explain more and help you find healthy check centers in your area.

4) Check that Tooth.

Dental insurance comes bundled with Tonik Plans, so you might as well use it. As long as you stay in network, you’ll find that cleanings, exams and x-rays won’t cost you anything. If you need a filling, you have a $25 dental deductible then the plan pays 80% and you pay the remaining 20%. Total dental benefits paid by Anthem Blue Cross are limited to a maximum of $500 per year. Use the Anthem Blue Cross doctor finder to find a dentist in your network. Note: If you don’t get your teeth cleaned on a regular basis, you’ll soon have stank breath- so do us all a favor and make the call.

5) Pay Your Bills.

The number one reason why individuals are dropped from their plans is because they haven’t made a payment on time. Your bill is usually due on the first of the month. If you chose paper billing you will have to pre-pay for two months and there is a two dollar charge for the paper option. Want to save the earth or just having trouble remembering to get that check in the mail? Visit the Anthem CA section to access forms to fill out an automatic checking (or CC) withdrawal form. It takes 2 minutes and it can help ensure that you stay covered.

Medicoverage is an authorized independent agent. Benefits above are subject to change.