Freelancers Union

The saga continues… My PCP quit Freelancer’s Medical, and they didn’t switch me to his replacement. Now I can’t use the Freelancer’s clinics, and they just tell me to call Empire. Empire’s site won’t let me change my PCP to the new doctor at Freelancer’s, and the average wait time to actually speak to someone is an hour.
I’ve since purchased health insurance through another provider, but I can’t even find a way to cancel my insurance through Freelancer’s or Empire. You know a company is bad when they don’t provide the service they promised, and they can’t even provide a way to CANCEL that service.
Never will do business with nor recommend Freelancer’s again.

I had Freelancers Insurance a couple years ago when they were the insurance company. After a miscarriage for a planned pregnancy that required surgery to ensure I didn’t bleed to death, Freelancer’s told me I had to pay 100% of the costs because I hadn’t gotten pre-​approval for the procedure. Let’s reiterate that– they told me, repeatedly, that I should have gotten pre-​approval for a miscarriage. It took 2 months and multiple phone calls, almost always with a different «customer service» rep, just to get that mind-​bogglingly offensive mistake cleared up, and another couple months to finally reduce bills from ~$ 9,000 to the $ 400 co-​pay for an emergency room visit, plus $ 700 for an out-​of-​network ambulance.
My experience with them more than a year later after a C-​section for my daughter was just as poor. They flooded me with cryptic and often mistaken paperwork and didn’t cover most of the costs as per my policy until I fought with them again for months to fix it. It was clear that their representatives were poorly trained and their number one directive was to push back on any member claims, no matter how unethical or illegal. Not one of them even knew (or were willing to tell me) the correct process for a getting denied claims formally reviewed, I had to figure it out myself. They make themselves out to be a union that’s on your side, but don’t be fooled, they’re just a heartless corporation out to make money off of their members when they’re at their most vulnerable.

I’ve had Freelancers for 7 years and I am discontinuing service this year. Its just awful. No customer service and the rates went up higher this past year than all of the 7 years combined I was with them. Also you can only be seen by 2 doctors in the city. Now Im having problems canceling my policy ugh!!!

How the F*CK do I cancel my Empire Blue policy through Freelancers?! Freelancers tells me to cancel with Empire and Empire tells me to cancel with Freelancers. Is anyone else having this problem? This is ridiculous.

I’ve had both Freelancers Union medical and dental insurance for a couple of years. I will find insurance elsewhere in 2016. Coverage negotiated with providers is sub-​standard – but the killer for me is how bad customer service is if you have to deal with Freelancers directly. The bureaucracy and attitude is as bad, if not worse, than the large insurance companies. I thought I was buying into a smaller, more people-​focused experience but it’s just not the case.

This is a total disaster of a company. The clinic they make you go to for primary was fine, esp. if you make enough to pay full price and you like subsidizing poor designers to get acupuncture and yoga at their doctors office.
The REAL PROBLEMS ARE with billing. It is a total disaster. STAY AWAY AT ALL COSTS!!! They basically sign you up through freelancers, but then give you blue cross blue shield and if you have any problems — like that they didn’t take your ex-​husband off your policy — both sides — freelancers and blue cross — swear that the other one is the one that has to remedy the situation.

TERRIBLE & SUPER SKETCHY.
1. Their website hasn’t been updated since 2014.
2. There’s ZERO billing information online – just instructions to call, but they only answer the phone during business hours, and offer no customer service evenings or weekends.
3. They send emails purportedly with links to billing information, but after you log in there’s an error message.
4. You can’t even email a webmaster to tell them of the broken website.
5. I’m pretty sure that the gym reimbursement forms I mailed in last November were never paid, though they continue to remember to bill me every month.
6. My plan includes one eye exam every two years, but when I log into the optical website it says I’m not covered for an exam. So I had to pay out-​of-​pocket and then find time my work day to call them to do what I pay them to do.
I would not recommend this to anyone.

The previous reviews are all dead on. I’m writing this review on Unilocal because I cannot find anyone to complain to on Freelancer’s Union’s site. It’s like a secret society. I’m about to make a formal complaint to the state.
I pay over $ 625 a month for the platinum plan. This is because I am a type 1 diabetic. I have to have various services or my health is critically impacted.
Someone earlier said when you call Freelancer’s they tell you to call Empire and when you call Empire they tell you to call Freelancers. It’s true and to boot it is now the 19^th and the message the previous reviewer said was on the line March 10^th that they are offsite at a meeting till 10am on there STILL on there and it immediately hangs up on you. So, no access to customer service of any sort.
The interfaces are HORRIBLE. Empire says you need to contact Freelancers Union if you are enrolled through them. I need to check on my deductible, if it’s been met and what I owe to various doctors I’ve been seeing. The Freelancer’s Union options are as follows: Are you calling about –long list of things you have to patiently wait for them to go through; retirement services, disability, health insurance etc) then when you pick health insurance — do you want to buy or update or change your plan.
NEITHER. I need to know current benefit information about my plan.
When they switched over in January it was a complete debacle. They cancelled me twice despite full payment. They enrolled me in the wrong plan. They refused to help me when I needed insulin and couldn’t get it because the pharmacies had me as erroneously cancelled. They would tell me I wasn’t and it was fixed and 3 visits to the pharmacy and each time Empire still had as cancelled. Calls to customer service would require hours of hold times (no exaggeration) and then them telling me it’s been fixed. Requests for a supervisor and they would say they are busy and will call you back in 24 – 48 hours. No one ever returned my call. Finally I flipped out (I need insulin to stay ALIVE) and a supervisor called me and gave me the wrong information again. I called back the next day and was, after much duress and demanding finally given a supervisor who apologized and was able to help, but at that point it had take over a week.
The thorough lack of accountability on freelancer’s unions end is in my mind criminal. They know it’s a mess, they say it’s a mess but have done nothing to fix it that I can tell. How can I get a hold of anyone to let them know what is happening? You can’t because there is no number except that number that currently won’t let you through and in the past has never had access to anyone that can help me.
How can you allow the only customer service number to be down for 9 DAYS with a message that cuts you off saying they are in an off site meeting? HOW? And why do you stop customer service for an off site meeting anyway?
Medical insurance has serious and far reaching consequences for a person’s health. Especially when facing a chronic condition. The websites don’t link up, the billing has inconsistencies even the good supervisor I was finally able to reach was unable to explain (I finally gave up). They act like you are calling about a trip to the beauty salon.
Freelancer’s medical — the centers you go and don’t pay a co-​pay are pretty great, but I no longer live in NYC, I live upstate. And they are not good for specialist care or for questions about your insurance (they have no control over that). They are only good if you need to have primary care and can refer you if you need. This is not my situation. If you are very healthy and don’t think you will ever get sick, fine, this might be okay for you. But how do you know? I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 43. I went to freelancer’s medical and complained of tiredness for two years. They didn’t catch it until I went to an emergency room upstate. So, as nice as they are, it wasn’t perfect for me. But again, that portion of freelancers is the only thing working as far as I can tell. But they can’t do anything to advocate for your coverage or specialist care.
I am paying over $ 625 a month for this and I’m going to figure out how I end it and enroll in a different plan. I am so distraught over it and it has caused me so much stress my health has been impacted.
So, I say stay far away from any plans from them.

Wish I could give it zero stars. Freelancer’s has self destructed in 2015. The worst company with the worst insurance and ZERO customer service. Just try getting a call returned, or a question answered. Imagine if you had to file a claim for something! hardly bears contemplation. Avoid at all costs.

These people are the worst! There is no communication between FU and Anthem Blue Cross which provides the actual health insurance. That leaves you stuck in the middle footing the bill for something that your premium covers. You’re better off stuffing money in a mattress for a rainy day.

I rarely give poor reviews but I just got burned by Freelancers Union and need to share. I mailed a bunch of out of network claims in early December to FU (along with claims to two other insurers) and the other two insurers processed my claims within 1 – 2 weeks but FU hadn’t, so I called and asked why they didn’t get the claim yet, and they said it can take up to two weeks or something to process, and perhaps I should fax the claim (my response: ALMOST NO ONE faxes anymore, everyone emails and PDFs, but fine), I waited another week or so and called — same runaround. Finally I faxed the claim in, in late December. Today I checked and they denied all the claims. When I called to ask why, the reasons for most of them were that I was outside the 180 day claim submission window (despite that two of the dates would have been inside the window had they gotten my original submission — how convenient for them that they didn’t) and the one that was within the 180 day window they denied for not having been pre-​authorized or pre-​certified.
Freelancers Union supposedly used Anthem Blue Cross in 2014 but late in 2014 I worked for an employer that used Anthem and they didn’t require pre-​certification for the same out of network charges. Blue Cross has never required it for these submissions, but somehow FU (properly named) magically requires it, conveniently to them. I got nothing back.
I’m really disgusted with them. It’s just as well that they decided to go «pricey HMO» on everyone because everyone I know has left them as of 2015. They aren’t even on the playing field anymore. And this experience wasting my time (big time) submitting a claim, calling, faxing, checking — was just adding further insult to the experience. They were overpriced and not worth the experience.
It’s sad to see a formerly reputable company that supposedly is there for the freelancers, screw individuals /​freelancers out of a few hundred bucks on technicalities that serve FU. And seeing these other complaints on Unilocal makes me realize I’m completely not alone.
If karma means anything, good luck to FU. Very uncool.

Freelancers is holding $ 450 of my money hostage. I opted out of their medical insurance before the ¹²⁄₁₅ deadline. They billed me (auto-​pay) yesterday. They require 7 – 10 business days to refund the money. I’m sure it was not a mistake… something instead probably that their accountant recommended for tax purposes. Meanwhile, I am out money that I desperately need. Their new insurance plans are terribly costly and I don’t recommend anyone do business with them.

In this day and age of universal health insurance, Freelancers Union dropped my policy for a $ 79.11/mos payment error because they «no longer reinstate members».
In July they sent a letter by snail mail stating I would be receiving a rebate that would be reflected in my August premium amount.
I send e-​payments from my bank so I adjusted the August payment accordingly. I forgot about this minor transaction, and didn’t re-​adjust my premium payment.
Freelancers Union continued to receive and accept monthly payments from me at the «rebate rate» which was $ 79.11 less than my contracted rate. On November 11, they sent an email that stated I was $ 158.22 in arrears and had to pay by November 30^th or my policy would be terminated as of AUGUST. Did I mention they were still accepting my monthly e-​payments?
Well, the holidays enveloped my brain and I sent the payment ON November 30^th. November 30^th was a Sunday and their billing and enrollment department was not open, but they accepted my e-​payment on December 1 … and proceeded to cancel my policy.
Really Freelancers? Really?
That’s customer service?
Freelancers is going to send me a refund rather than reinstate my membership because, as the «customer service agent» I spoke with said «We don’t reinstate policies anymore».
I’ve been a loyal consumer since 2005, I can’t believe this is how you’re handling this situation.

After 6 months of paying insurance premiums every month not one claim has been paid. I have contacted the F. U. multiple times and received the run-​around. I applied to the FU as a primary coverage. Someone in the mail room opened up requested correspondence from my previous provider and decided that the FU would be my secondary coverage. I was never notified of this change in terms. It took 6 months for me to find this out. An error on their part as I no longer paid my previous providers premiums.
Then I provided requested termination information form my previous insurance provider. That was in November. As of January 2, 20 011 no claims have been paid. How ugly.
There is NO synthesis of information between departments in the Freelancer’s Union. If the MD’s claims are not paid I will be forced to give up coverage and use my premium money to pay my allergist.
I guess Insurance For All is just a catchy marketing phrase that is used in the ads. It appears that the Freelancer’s Union is in the business of collecting premiums. They are not paying my claims.

I’ve had Freelancers Union for over 1 year. It’s AWFUL!!! STAY AWAY. Bad customer service using disorganized archaic systems, and lots of shadiness. Bills/​copays confused, refunds messed up just a nightmare.
Health care in New York is very expensive. And the «Union» is no exception, unless you do one of their Catastrophic coverage plans with high deductible /​«If you get hit by a bus» plans. I do not recommend this type of insurance unless you are a very healthy, non risk-​taking kind of person. READ THE FINE PRINT on these plans, most make you cover EVERYTHING, up to the deductible. So make sure you have the 3 – 5000 dollars in the bank in case something goes wrong. @230/mo you’re in for over 7 grand if something happens over the course of a year.
Consider a health savings account if you really can’t afford higher premiums. Of course GET INSURANCE of some kind if you don’t have any. Affinity does Family Health Plus, which is like Medicaid with less-​strict income requirements, but if you are unemployed, no matter how much you have in the bank you CAN QUALIFY. I had this insurance for 2 years it is AMAZING. look into it!!!
good luck
md

As a response to A.M.‘s comment about it going up to $ 380/​month. that’s not actually accurate. There is a more expensive PPO option (as there has always been), but there still is a EPO option with Empire. It’s now at $ 239.64/month. Check the website for all the deets. FYI…

Their health insurance costs have changed. The old plan sounded great (the HIP one). The new one is a PPO through Empire, and costs $ 380 a month if you’re single. More than a hundred dollar raise. Healthy NY is apparently a better deal…

To clarify about the health benefits (if anyone’s interested) — it’s great, as long as you fit into their definitions of freelance work. No one working in the fields of the food industry or in retail (which is every artist and actor I know) qualify for the insurance. Leading me to believe they’re not the benevolent helpers of artists they would leave you to believe.