Aetna vs Horizon NJ Blue Cross/Shield (required, pay)

[luckyram]

Have a choice due to new open enrollment of going with an Aetna $10 copay plan (Aetna Freedom 10) vs a Horizon BCBS $10 copay plan (NJ Direct 10). All of the benefits are the same and the doctors I use will accept both plans.

Any suggestions on which is better for coverage in NJ??

[ansky]

I had Aetna for many years and hated them. The plan I had was an HMO and required a referral for every little thing. I had many claims denied over the years because there were instances where my doctor had said a referral should not be warranted but Aetna thought otherwise and denied the claims. As an example, I had major surgery a few years ago that required pre-op and post-op appointments with my surgeon. The surgeon told me that each of those appointments would all be covered under 1 claim because it's the same "event". Aetna insisted that I needed a separate referral from my PCP for each individual appointment which was just ridiculous and they would not pay the claims.

I'm glad to be rid of them. I'm now on a Cigna plan that covers just about everything with no referrals required.

[SonorityGenius]

In new jersey hands down Horizon esp 10 copay