New Website Offers Insurance Choice

An Indiana entrepreneur launched website www.medicalinsurancenow.com to target the growing problem of uninsured and underinsured in America. The site offers new technology that allows customers to compare plans and rates from several insurance carriers.

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (PRWEB) January 17, 2005 -- According to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, the number of uninsured Hoosiers grew by nearly 200,000 between 2000 and 2003, and this disturbing trend shows no sign of letting up any time soon. Today local entrepreneur Mike Ertel, an insurance industry veteran, officially launched the website Medicalinsurancenow.com to address this trend. Customers can use the site to compare insurance carriers and their specific plans and pricing against one another. Short-term and long-term health insurance from providers Humana, UniCare, Fortis and Celtic can be purchased directly through the site. Plans are in the works to add additional providers.
   
Ertel founded local insurance brokerage firm Ertel & Company in 1995, where he built a reputation for strong customer service and support. The Fishers firm sells insurance and employee benefits solutions to companies in Indiana and 13 other states. His over 15 years of experience includes a current stint on the Indiana Agent Advisory Council for Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. His new website addresses the growing trend of health coverage moving from an employer-based model to one of personal responsibility.
   
The bottom line is that far fewer people are getting coverage through their employers and we dont see this trend going away any time soon," said Ertel. We launched Medicalinsurancenow.com to help people make sense of all the different plans and pricing, and most importantly, to get people covered. Many of these people would traditionally have depended on an HR department to help them through this process, but thats no longer an option."
        
Although the company is currently licensed in several states to sell health insurance through the new website, the initial launch will focus specifically on the Indiana market. The local Ertel & Company staff will administer all support and customer relations. Although we are selling online, I want our customers to know they can pick up the phone and talk to a real person about their needs. Thats the way we do business in Indiana," Ertel said.
        
Denver Abernathy, owner of local consulting firm Promethius Consulting, sees the need. The cost of insuring our staff has shot up in recent years and I can see that many small businesses like ours just arent covering their employees any more. These days most interviewees seem shocked to find out that we cover our employees," he said.
        
In 2003 alone, the average price of retail prescriptions filled in Indiana rose by 6.8%, slightly larger than the national average. According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, between 1996 and 2002, the average employee premium contribution per enrolled private-sector employee for single coverage rose 65.2 percent, from $342 to $565.

For more information about Medicalinsurancenow.com, visit the site at www.medicalinsurancenow.com.

Contact: Mike Ertel
(317) 577-2777
mertel@medicalinsurancenow.com

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