In four years David Varvel went from no health insurance, to full coverage via the Japanese government, to purchasing a high deductible plan, and then full coverage through an employer. He said having to switch insurance that often was “painful.” But now the founder of Tiny Cat Loans, a community lending platform, said he and his family have settled on HackerCare: a healthcare startup for startups that is working to hack healthcare.
HackerCare launched in beta in early February, and counts about a dozen members. The company signs up members for a health plan with the help of an insurance broker, and for an additional $50 a year, provides other services from health startups to supplement insurance with the aim of lowering costs.
“HackerCare is for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs. Also, it’s a lot easier to communicate with a smaller more agile company like HackerCare than a massive hulk like Kaiser or Blue Cross,” Varvel told TechCrunch. “It’s a great way for me to get coverage while getting my startup off the ground.”
Based in Sacramento, HackerCare is focusing on signing up people in Silicon Valley — although later this year the plan is to expand coast-to-coast, said CEO Gina Lujan. The bootstrapped company is partnering with health startups to offer additional services for members, allowing them to launch in beta with a real customer pool, and giving HackerCare members services that save them money.
“We want to hack that health plan with additional services,” Lujan said.
Thus far, 1.6 million Californians have either signed up for a plan or enrolled in state Medi-Cal through Covered California; of those, 728,410 signed up for their own plans.
Covered California, the state’s insurance exchange, allows users to search for plans, depending on their ZIP code and income. There are plans available for less than $200, as well as others that are double or triple that price. Spokeswoman Sarah Sol told TechCrunch that Covered California is the best place to get information about receiving federal assistance, counseling or any official insurance information.
Some of the services HackerCare is set to provide members includes TelaDoc, allowing members to skip on a deductible to see a doctor and Skype with one, and vision services with The Shop
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