If you’re new to travel nursing, you may have a lot of questions about health insurance for travel nurses. Or maybe you’re a seasoned travel nurse who wants to know what your options are for health insurance. Here’s our full breakdown on health insurance for traveling nurses, so you can choose the right insurance for your needs!
Do travel nurses get health insurance?
Yes, many staffing agencies offer health insurance coverage to their healthcare travelers. However, some healthcare travelers still choose to get their own coverage through other means like private health insurance. There are multiple ways you can secure health insurance as a travel nurse, what option you choose depends on a few factors.
Travel nurse health insurance options
But what are all the health insurance options for travel nurses? There are quite a few directions you can go when choosing travel nurse health insurance. These include:
- Agency-provided health insurance
- Short-term health insurance
- Affordable Care Act (ACA) compliant individual or family health insurance
- Private health insurance
- Preferred Provider Organization (PPO)
- Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)
- Point of Service (POS)
The option you choose depends on your travel lifestyle, coverage needs, and how much you’re willing to spend. Keep reading for the pros and cons of agency health insurance vs private health insurance.
Agency health insurance
Most healthcare staffing agencies offer their travelers some sort of health insurance plan. While convenient, this health insurance isn’t always best for the traveler’s needs. You may need more coverage than what agencies provide or need more flexibility in your plan. Here are the pros and cons for choosing agency health insurance.
Pros
- You won’t have to stress about shopping around to find health insurance. Taking agency-provided insurance is convenient and saves you time as you won’t have to go through the hassle of researching the best health insurance options, you can just sign up for what is offered to you.
- Agency health insurance is typically cheaper than getting insurance on your own. This is because staffing agencies will subsidize part of your insurance costs, and they can get cheaper insurance premiums since they’re providing for a large group of people.
- You won’t have to worry about if you're covered in your new contract location. The agency insurance will always cover whatever area your assignment is in.
- Your agency health insurance plan may have better coverage than private health insurance. Insurance companies are willing to offer more coverage with agencies that cover a lot of travelers. The number of plans agencies take out allow insurance companies to offer better rates because they’re spreading the risk over more plans, also called “risk pooling”, a common practice in the insurance industry.
- Agency plans typically offer dental and vision insurance, so you might not need to spend extra money on insurance for these needs.
- Some agencies offer to keep your insurance running for a period after you have completed a contract, so you don’t have to immediately jump from one contract to the next to retain coverage. In this scenario, any additional charges would be deducted from your next paycheck.
Cons
- The insurance that’s offered to you may not be best for you and your specific needs. Choosing your own health insurance gives you more control over your medical coverage.
- If you change agencies often, you will have to change insurance often as well. This is not only annoying, but you may have gaps of coverage between agencies and contracts as not every agency offers insurance on day one. Some insurance policies won’t kick in until after 30 days. In these cases, you’d have to find gap insurance or risk having something happen while you’re uninsured.
- Some agency plans are only valid while you’re on a job, so if you like taking breaks in between assignments, you might be left without insurance while you’re not on assignment.
- Your deductibles will also reset every time you have to switch insurance between different agencies.
- If a contract falls through, you may be left with no insurance.
- If you choose to stick with one agency to avoid switching insurance and losing coverage for periods of time, you’re:
Private health insurance for travel nurses
A private health insurance plan can offer more stability, consistency, and flexibility for travelers. On the other hand, it can be more expensive and take more research than accepting health insurance offered by agencies. Here are the pros and cons of private health insurance for travel nurses.
Pros
- You can find full nationwide coverage with some private plans. This means wherever you travel to, you’ll receive the same level of care as you would when you’re home.
- You won’t have any gaps in coverage. You can take as much time off in between assignments as you want, and you’ll still be covered. Plus, you can work with as many agencies as you want, and your coverage will always be the same.
- By providing your own health insurance, you may be able to negotiate higher pay. Since you’re opting out of the agency plan, the agency isn’t having to pay for an additional traveler’s policy, leaving them more money to spend on your pay rate.
- You’ll have the freedom to choose a custom plan that fits your medical needs, as well as more control over your monthly premium, copays, and deductibles.
Cons
- Not every private plan includes coverage for mental health, vision, or dental. You may have to pay extra for these benefits.
- You will be charged monthly for these benefits, instead of an amount deducted from your weekly paycheck. Getting used to paying this larger lump sum once a month might take some extra budgeting or planning.
- You need to be on the lookout for companies that aren’t accredited insurance companies. One example is cost sharing programs that aren’t real policies, but a pool that all premiums go into, and all bills must be submitted for approval. If your bill isn’t approved, you’re completely responsible for the cost.
- Private health insurance is typically more expensive than agency insurance because you have pay for the entire policy on your own, and you don’t have the discount agencies get by taking out multiple policies with an insurance company.
- Some insurance companies don’t have coverage in all 50 states, which defeats the purpose of having stability by taking out your own health insurance. You might have to do some research to find a company with the coverage you need.
Types of private health insurance
There are different types of private health insurance for different needs. Here’s a breakdown of the different types and how to make sure you pick the right health insurance plan.
Short-term health insurance
One private insurance option is short-term insurance. These plans are typically cheaper than other travel nurse health insurance but have fewer benefits. Short-term health insurance plans must be renewed every three to six months and can deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions.
If you’re diagnosed with a condition and then go to renew this type of policy, the diagnosis may then be treated as a pre-existing condition, and you will no longer have coverage for treatments related to that condition. These plans may not offer other essential health benefits like dental care.
Short-term health insurance may be right for you if:
- You’re in-between contracts for a few weeks
- You’re in the process of switching agencies
- You can’t afford other private health insurance premiums
ACA-compliant health insurance
Another health insurance option for healthcare providers is ACA-compliant health insurance plans, otherwise known as individual health insurance plans. These policies have to follow regulations laid out by the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Part of those regulations require these plans include these 10 healthcare services:
- Emergency services
- Hospitalization
- Out-patient services
- Maternity and newborn care
- Mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder services
- Prescription drugs
- Rehabilitative and habilitative services
- Laboratory services
- Pediatric services, including oral and vision care
- Preventative and wellness services and chronic disease management
You can sign up for these plans online during the open enrollment period, which starts November 1st and goes through December 15th, with insurance coverage beginning on January 1st. This is the only time you can enroll in an ACA health insurance plan unless you experience a qualifying life event such as:
- Having a baby
- Moving outside your previous plan’s coverage area
- Switching jobs
If you experience any of these events, you can enroll in an ACA-compliant plan during a 60-day special enrollment period. Also note that these plans don’t cover dental and vision care, so you’ll have to take out supplemental insurance for these needs.
You can purchase an ACA-compliant health insurance plan on Healthcare.gov or through a private insurance company. There are different types of ACA-compliant plans to consider as well including:
- Preferred Provider Organization (PPO)
- Point of Service (POS)
- Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)
- Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO)
Travel nurse insurance cost
The cost of your travel nursing insurance will depend on which plan you choose. You should start by finding out how much agency-provided health insurance will cost you (monthly premiums, out of pocket maximums, yearly deductibles) and compare it to private health insurance quotes.
If you don’t work all year round, calculate how much private health insurance will cost during the months you’re working as compared to agency insurance costs. Once you have the numbers to compare, you can figure out the best option for you.
Are you required to have health insurance?
No, you’re not required to have health insurance on the federal level. However, some states may fine you a tax penalty if you don’t have health insurance coverage. These states include:
- California
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Washington, D.C.
What is the best health insurance for travel nurses?
The best health insurance for travel nurses is a plan that covers the traveler anywhere, so no matter what state their next assignment takes them to, they’re covered. Typically, a nationwide PPO plan provided by a large brand tends to be the best for healthcare travelers. Additionally, here are some questions you can ask yourself to determine what kind of plan might be best for you:
- What does your agency offer for benefits? What will your out-of-pocket costs be? Do they offer a health savings account, also known as an HSA?
- Do you need to cover your spouse or dependents? What kind of coverage do they need?
- What medical concerns or conditions do you have that may affect the coverage you need?
- Do you work with one agency or multiple agencies?
- Do you take time off between assignments?
Figuring out what kind of traveler you are and what kind of coverage you and/or your dependents may need will help you narrow down your choices.
Questions to ask your recruiter
Another step you can take to get more clarity is have a conversation with your recruiter to find out more about agency-provided health insurance for travel nurses. You should fully understand the plan you’re potentially signing up for and the other options available to you. Here are some questions you can ask:
- How much will their plan cost you out of each paycheck?
- How much of your premium is sponsored by the agency?
- Would the agency pay you more if you provided your own insurance?
- Can you combine a private insurance plan with their plan?
- What does their plan cover? Are vision, dental, and mental health benefits included?
- When would your policy begin?
- When would your policy end?
- Is coverage only valid when you’re on assignment?
- Do they offer gap insurance?
You have a lot of choices when it comes to travel nurse health insurance plans. The choice is a personal one and every traveler will have different needs. Check out the health insurance plans our agency partners offer and browse the marketplace of jobs they offer while you’re at it!