With a little research and a little ingenuity, freelance writers can find health insurance plans that not only cover the individual freelance writer but also the writer's family. Freelance writers have a variety of options for purchasing group health, dental and vision coverages. The specifics of the coverage all depend on the organization through which they are underwritten.
Group Health Insurance through Writing Memberships
There are many writing organizations that offer group health insurance to its members. Some of the organizations require an annual membership fee while other organizations are free to join. Group health benefits are readily available. All a writer has to do is the initial research to find out which writing group to join and which one has the best health insurance coverage to suit her needs.
Below are a few such organizations that offer group health insurance programs to freelance writers:
- New York residents can join the Freelancer's Union. One of the more attractive features to joining is that membership is free. After joining, members should investigate their insurance programs. Freelancer's Union offers health, dental, long-term disability and term life. As of this writing, members can choose from five different group plans.
- The National Writers Association has chapters in California, Florida, Denver, New York and Honolulu and appears to be growing. They offer medical insurance through MedChoice, LLC and Dental, Vision and Chiropractic Services through AmeriPlan and Direct Dental Plans of America, Inc. There is a fee to become a member of the National Writers Association.
- The National Writer's Union currently has 16 chapters and offers its members a wide array of group health and dental insurance plans. The plans vary depending upon the area of the country. Membership dues are fairly based on a sliding scale depending on the annual writing income.
- Editorial Freelancers Association offers health insurance to its members. Don't be confused by the name. EFA is an organization consisting of writers, editors, proofreaders, researchers and more. They offer several group health plans underwritten by companies such as HIP (Health Insurance Plan of Greater New York), Cigna, Oxford Northeast Dental and more.
The Larger the Group the More Affordable the Coverage
The above listed companies are just a few writer organizations that offer health insurance coverage. The trick to finding affordable health insurance is to become a part of a large group. The larger the group, the lower the insurance premiums and the more insurance options are available. Even taking membership fees into consideration, it makes financial sense for freelance writers to join a writing association.
In addition to health insurance, these organizations offer career enhancing education, support, networking opportunities and more
Felicia A. Williams - Felicia A. Williams is a full time freelance writer with over 20 years of business writing experience.
