Are you a musician? Do you need advice or information about health insurance?
You're not alone. A 2001 FMC survey of 2,700 musicians revealed that the complicated process of obtaining health insurance overwhelmed many of them.
FMC has teamed up with Alex Maiolo and Chris Stephenson to create HINT – the Health Insurance Navigation Tool. The goal of this project is to provide informed, musician-friendly support and advice to curious musicians who need information about health insurance, for free.
Click here to download a print-ready, one-page information sheet about HINT (PDF).
How to Get Advice
HINT appointments are currently available Monday through Thursday, 7 PM – 8:30 PM Eastern time. Appointments are 30 minutes long.
Click here to request an appointment. After filling out this form and answering a few questions, your request will be emailed to our HINT team and they will confirm the date and time with you.
All calls are confidential. FMC will collect summary data on the insurance needs of musicians so that we will better understand how to effectively work towards providing health insurance for artists in the future.
ARN ABOUT HINT
Interview with HINT consultant Alex Maiolo about HINT
July 2007
There are two parts to this project:
Articles that give an overview of the options available for musicians.
Health Insurance Overview If you don't know where to begin, then start with this overview of the seven ways you could obtain health insurance including employer-based plans, individual plans, state-funded initiatives, benefits offered by music unions, each with links to further information. Health Insurance Is A Bad Deal, Until You Get Sick The majority of Americans who have health insurance get it through their employer. But what it if you leave that company to pursue your musical dream? What it you don't have a job that offers benefits? A quick look at the simple economics will probably lead you to decide that health insurance seems like an unaffordable luxury. But we urge you to think again. There are ways to engage in the health insurance system that ensure that you have coverage when you need it most, without breaking the bank.
Health Savings Accounts
A Health Savings Account – HSA – is a relatively new financial strategy that allows the insured person to save money in a tax-free account that can be used to pay for future health costs. Can musicians and creators use this new tool to their advantage?
Best Practices
An area where we're collecting information about companies or organizations that are offering health insurance, either through tradiitonal group plans or through novel ideas, that offer the flexibility that musicians need.
Glossary of Terms
Half the battle in understanding health insurance is figuring out the lingo and keeping all the terms straight. Here's a glossary with the most-used terms, also posted on each article page.
Resources
Reports and organizations working on comprehensive health care reform.
We see this project as a safety net for those musicians who remain uninsured because of lack of support or clear information. Those musicians who reach out for help will get it. With this small step we hope to bridge the gap between confusion and need.
HINT is made possible by a grant from the Nathan Cummings Foundation.
Support HINT
Two Raleigh concerts in memory of musician Drew Glackin; proceeds go to Glackin’s family and Future of Music Coalition’s Health Insurance Navigation Tool
Local music heroes Tres Chicas, Patty Hurst Shifter, Kenny Roby, Chip Robinson & Heavy Beat Outfit, Port Huron Statement, The Silos, BJ Barham, Tandy, Chris Mills, Glory Fountain, Quarry Hill, Joe Swank & the Zen Pirates, Lou Ford and The Cartridge Family will pay musical tribute to talented multi-instrumentalist Drew Glackin. The concerts take place at The Pour House Music Hall on Saturday, May 3, and Sadlack’s Heroes on Sunday, May 4, both in Raleigh, NC
Disclaimer: Future of Music Coalition provides basic
health insurance information to answer your basic health insurance
option questions. Insurance is regulated on a federal basis and by
each state, and each insurance carrier rules and policy terms may differ
from state to state and between individuals. Therefore, you acknowledge
and agree that any insurance-related information provided by or through
the Website is general information only, and may not apply to your
particular situation. FMC does not endorse any insurance carrier, product,
or policy and is not responsible or liable for any information provided
on the website, by a HINT representative or other resource. FMC shall
not be responsible for any injury, loss, or damage which occurs as
a result of any statements, advice or information provided in or through
the HINT program, or for the reliability or accuracy of same. In addition,
any user of the HINT program who chooses to make any personally identifiable
information or other information publicly available to a HINT representative
or otherwise does so at his or her own risk. Such disclosures
are expressly excluded from the terms of our Privacy
Policy.For
more information see our terms of service.
Fractured
Atlas is a nonprofit service organization for artists and
creators. One of the benefits they offer their members is access
to group health insurance. Visit the website and select your
state from the menu to see the state-specific insurance options.
Membership in the organization is $75 annual for an individual, but
there are also affordable group rates starting at $150.
AHIRC:
The Artists’ Health Insurance Resource Center is an
online database created by the Actors’ Fund with a grant from
the National Endowment for the Arts. Data is organized by state
and includes information about resources in each state for artists,
and lists of insurers of all kinds. Access to this data is
free.
Health
Alliance for Austin Musicians If you are an uninsured,
professional musician in the Austin, TX area, you may be eligible
for low-cost primary health care services, basic dental care and
mental health counseling provided by HAAM.
SIMS Foundation is
a non-profit organization that provides access to low-cost mental
health services for Austin, TX musicians and their immediate families.
Texas Music Office is a state-funded business promotion and information clearinghouse for the musicians of Texas. The insurance page provides a detailed list of health insurance options for residents of Texas.
A
Consumer Guide for Getting and Keeping Health Insurance Created
by the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, this website
provides legal information about your rights as a health insurance
consumer for each state. Updated regularly.
eHealthinsurance.com A
for-profit broker that consolidates information about plans and premiums
on their website.
