OK,

so I've been living on the edge, without health insurance for about 2 years now- since being laid off from my previous job after 15+ years. I've been paying ~$350/mo for BCBS insurance for my wife + 3 year old son, but the additional cost for myself was just too much.

We spoke to an agent today about some insurance through "Alliance for Affordable Services", backed by Mid-West Life insurance of Tennessee (we live in NC). It all sounded great, almost too good to be true- they can cover all 3 of us for less than BCBS coverage for just my wife + son- for a bit less coverage. We completed the application, and got the paperwork. It all sounded good, but I wanted to read over the info to make sure we were not making a bad choice. One thing that is now catching my eye is this- "Surgeon benefit= 80% up to the maximum benefit option $3000"..... Now, it seems to me that you'd be hard-pressed to get a surgeon to do much more than remove a splinter for $3000. The more I read over this form, the more questions are popping up.

Anyone on the board familiar with this company or this type of insurance??
They claim to be "affiliated" with a group called "Alliance for Affordable Services", which is supposed to be a non-profit group that allows them to get group rates for insurance, as well as all sorts of other products and services, from office supplies to hotel rooms to rental cars.
I am planning to call the NC Dept of Insurance on monday to see if they are legit, or if they have many complaints against them- but I'd like to get as much info as I can. I did a Google search, but only come up with some class action suits, and some organizational problems that they have had in the past- certainly not an overwhelming negative response, but it brings up some more questions.

Any info or input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Bret.