Frequently Asked Questions

No. Lucie isn’t here to replace brokers, but to give you more time to focus on advising clients and growing your book.

You do. Your client relationships and data remain yours. Lucie just helps boost your business and relationships.

No more juggling spreadsheets, PDFs, re-keying data, and re-explaining the same trade-offs. Instead, you compare plans and walk clients through decisions in one place.

Clients see options and pros and cons clearly. That means less admin, fewer fire drills, and more time to advise.

Lucie standardizes the work that doesn’t need to be reinvented. Plan comparisons and client education live in one system, so you can support more clients without hustling on manual work.

Clients see clear options and are able to make comparisons upfront. So you spend less time managing details and more time advising.

You respond faster. You serve more groups. You grow without burning out or adding headcount.

Lucie is an Enhanced Direct Enrollment (EDE) platform, which means we are directly integrated with the federal system. Because of this, CMS requires all users to verify their identity before using it.

The process is quick. You’ll answer a few questions based on your personal or financial history—like identifying a previous address or a vehicle you’ve owned—to confirm it’s really you. Once verified, you’re cleared to quote and enroll clients within the platform.

If you are looking to offer supplemental coverage, passing identity proofing is just the first step. To add these products to a client’s health insurance plan, you must be officially appointed with the specific carrier.

Finally, you won't see these additional carrier products unless they are enabled in your profile. Make sure to toggle them on in your settings so they appear when you're building a plan for your clients.

Good news: If you’ve already enrolled a client through Lucie, you can layer on additional coverage without starting from scratch. Their information carries over automatically.

Just go to Quoting and Enrollments → Policies, find the client’s existing ACA policy, and select View. At the bottom of the page, click Quote Now. From there, you can quote additional plans, add them to the cart, and start the application.

Because the marketplace won’t finish your client’s enrollment until the application checks out. If it isn’t resolved:

Most clients have 90 days to fix a data matching issue. Luckily, Lucie makes these easy to catch. You’ll get an alert so you can upload the right documents and keep the enrollment moving.

ICHRA stands for Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement. Translation: An ICHRA lets you fund coverage without managing a traditional group plan.

Here’s how it works: You set a monthly allowance. Employees shop for their own individual health insurance. You reimburse them for premiums (and sometimes other expenses).

Traditional group health plans expose employers to unpredictable renewal increases, rising per-employee costs, and little control over long-term healthcare spend. Today, group coverage costs as much as $26,9931 per family per year. And those premiums rise ~11%2 every year due to claims history and market inflation, no matter how the business is performing.

ICHRA (Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement) offers a different approach. Instead of sponsoring a group plan, employers set a fixed monthly contribution. Employees use it to purchase their own health insurance.

The payoff: Costs become predictable and flexibility improves. That way, employers avoid the financial volatility built into traditional group plans.

Employees can have trouble finding what they need if they don’t have the right guidance. They can overpay for coverage they don’t need, choose high-deductible plans without understanding risk, or underinsure and face surprise costs later. That’s no good for employee retention.

Lucie guides employees based on how they’ll actually use their coverage.. Costs are made clear and explanations are in plain-English, not in insurance-latin. Here’s what Lucie does:

This helps employees make consistent, well-informed decisions. It also improves ROI on every benefits dollar.

Nope. Lucie is designed to work with brokers and benefits partners, not replace them.

Brokers remain essential to advising employers and helping to make sure they’re compliant. Since Lucie gives employees a clearer decision experience, brokers don’t have to deal with endless questions. And that means they can spend more time advising and guiding.

It also means employers get a smoother rollout and fewer issues to manage.

Healthcare inflation is real. But with ICHRA, you’re not locked into one all-or-nothing group renewal.

You define the contribution. If premiums rise, you decide how to adjust your budget instead of being forced to absorb the full increase or overhaul your entire plan.

That flexibility gives you cost control year over year, while employees still choose the coverage that fits them.

Compliance can get complicated. Which is exactly why Lucie can connect you with an ICHRA service provider or third party administrator that can help you manage compliance so you can focus on offering strong benefits without becoming an ICHRA compliance expert.

(As always, you should consult your legal or tax advisor for guidance specific to your organization.)

Lucie is built for teams that don’t live in a single ZIP code.

Employees select coverage available where they live. You maintain one consistent contribution strategy company-wide.

That means fewer contracts, less networks to manage, and a benefits strategy that scales as your footprint grows.

Yes, because ICHRA is a flexible solution built for the modern workforce. For small and mid-sized employers priced out of the traditional group market, it offers a predictable way to provide quality benefits to everyone from full-time staff to the growing gig worker population. Instead of struggling with annual renewal spikes, businesses set a fixed budget and provide a stable foundation that actually scales as they grow.

For large employers, this model is a strategic tool to lower total costs for full-time staff while finally extending benefits to part-time workers. By moving away from one-size-fits-all plans, companies offer personalized coverage that meets diverse needs without the administrative chaos of a traditional network.

It is the clearer path toward long-term stability and smarter benefits for every type of team.

Yes! Lucie doesn’t add fees to your plan or increase your premiums. You pay the same prices you would anywhere else.

No, you don’t have to at all. But they’re here (at no cost) if you need one.

You can easily explore plans and enroll on your own. And you'll have Lucie’s tech guiding you.

But if you want a second opinion or have questions, one of our premier broker partners is available to help. There’s no pressure. You call the shots. And we just back you up.

Most people enroll during Open Enrollment. That’s the annual window when anyone can sign up for an ACA plan. It changes based on the marketplace for your state, but it's typically at the end of the year.

Missed it? Not necessarily a problem.

You may still qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you’ve had a life event (like changing jobs, moving, getting married, or having a baby).

The Affordable Care Act is the law that set the rules for modern health insurance.

Under the ACA, insurance companies can’t deny you coverage or charge more because of preexisting conditions. Plans are required to cover the essential health benefits like doctor visits, prescriptions, mental health care, and preventive services.

The ACA also created subsidies that help millions of people afford coverage.

Yes. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Obamacare are two names for the same law. “Obamacare” started as a nickname. But it refers to the same health insurance rules, protections, and marketplace plans created by the ACA.

Yes, Lucie is an approved HealthCare.gov enrollment platform. In practical terms, that means you can think of Lucie as a more user-friendly front door to the ACA Marketplace.

Lucie uses secure technology that lets you shop for and enroll in Marketplace plans without leaving the Lucie platform. You’re still seeing the same plans, prices, and savings you’d find on HealthCare.gov. And your application is still submitted directly to the Marketplace.

Using Lucie doesn’t cost anything extra, change your options, or affect your eligibility for savings. It just gives you a simpler, more guided way to understand your options and choose a plan that fits.

Lucie automatically checks to see if you’re eligible for any subsidies. Subsidies are government discounts that lower your monthly premium or out-of-pocket costs. You get subsidies based on factors like income and household size. And more than 90% of people qualify.³

Lucie also helps you avoid paying for coverage you won’t use. And a heads up when pairing a lower-cost plan with certain care is more cost-effective.

No. Lucie doesn’t limit your options or raise your prices. The ACA plans and premiums are the same ones you’d see elsewhere.

What changes is the experience. Lucie’s tools allow you to sort through everything on your own. Lucie shows you how plans work and what they’ll actually cost you.

Yes, absolutely.

Lucie isn’t just for people starting from scratch. You can use it to pressure-test your current plan, see how it stacks up against other options, and plan ahead for future health needs.

It also helps you think bigger than health insurance alone.

Instead of crossing your fingers and hoping the premium tells the whole story, Lucie helps bring clarity.

It shows how costs add up after you enroll. That includes your deductible, copays, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximum.

So instead of guessing, you see the bigger picture. Then you can pick a plan based on likely total costs. Not just the lowest monthly premium.

Subsidies are advanced tax credits that lower the cost of health insurance.

Sometimes they also lower what you pay when you use care. And they’re more common than you’d think.

Eligibility mostly depends on your household income and size. If you qualify, the savings are applied automatically. Lucie estimates your subsidy eligibility in seconds.

So you’re always looking at your real cost, not the sticker price.

90% of people qualify for financial help through the Affordable Care Act.³

Here are the different types of subsidies:

Yes. Lucie is an approved HealthCare.gov enrollment platform. So the estimate you see is based on the same ACA subsidy rules used there.

What’s different is the experience. With Lucie, you can see your subsidy and explore your plan options in one place. No more bouncing between sites, or starting over.

The Federal Poverty Level (FPL) is an income benchmark based on how much your household earns and how many people are in it.

Your income gets translated into a percentage that determines whether you qualify for lower monthly premiums, extra savings on out-of-pocket costs, or programs like Medicaid.

That’s very common. Many people don’t have the same income every month, especially if you’re self-employed, work hourly, freelance, or have seasonal work.

This calculator uses your current or expected income to give you a helpful estimate. If your income goes up or down later in the year, your eligibility for savings or coverage programs may change, too. Lucie’s tools help you understand how those changes affect your options. That way, you can adjust if needed instead of being caught off guard.

Metal tiers affect what you pay each month and what you pay when you get care. They don’t reflect quality of care. Here’s the breakdown:

It depends on how you use your coverage.

Some people are better off keeping premiums low and paying more only if they need care. Others prefer higher monthly payments and fewer surprises later.

Lucie shows you the real numbers, not just the premium. That means you can see how each plan performs based on your life.

Sometimes that means pairing a lower-tier plan with special coverage. Sometimes it means choosing more predictable costs upfront. There isn’t a universal “best.” There’s what makes sense for your life.

Supplemental coverage is coverage that supplements your main health plan. It can include dental, vision, accident, critical illness, and cancer insurance.

It’s like backup. Your health plan covers the core medical care. Supplemental plans help with the things that don’t always get fully covered. Some even pay you cash to use however you need while you recover.

For most plans, routine exams are available right away.

For more advanced dental care — like fillings or crowns — there’s often a waiting period. It’s usually somewhere between 6 and 12 months.

The specifics vary by plan. Lucie lays that out upfront. That way you know what you can use immediately and what may require a little patience. All before you enroll.

Sometimes, but not in the way most people expect. Most standard health insurance plans cover medically necessary eye care, like injuries, infections, or conditions such as glaucoma. But routine vision care—like eye exams, glasses, and contacts—is usually not included.

That’s where vision insurance comes in. It’s built for the everyday stuff: annual exams, prescription updates, and help paying for glasses or contacts. Think of it this way: Health insurance protects your eyes from medical issues, while vision insurance helps you keep the world in focus.

A little, but not much. Most health insurance plans will only cover dental care tied to a medical issue, like an injury, oral surgery, or treatment related to a health condition. Routine dental care? Usually not included.

There’s one exception: The ACA requires plans to include dental coverage for kids (though it may be bundled into the plan or offered separately). For adults, though, things like cleanings, fillings, crowns, and checkups are handled through dental insurance.

Short-term plans are built for in-between moments.

They can make sense if you’re between jobs, waiting for employer coverage to start, recently graduated, or missed Open Enrollment and need a temporary bridge.

If you’re healthy and just want backup for emergencies, it can work well too. If you rely on ongoing care or prescriptions, it probably isn’t the best fit.

Short-term plans may cover emergency care, hospital stays, and treatment for new injuries or illnesses. It's a backup in case something goes wrong, not coverage for everyday care.

Short term health insurance usually does not meet the minimum essential coverage requirements under the Affordable Care Act.

These plans may include a pre-existing condition exclusion provision. Your policy might also have lifetime and/or annual dollar limits on health benefits.

Because it covers less. You’re mainly paying for protection if something unexpected happens. It’s not coverage for everyday care.

That’s because short-term plans don’t include many of the benefits required in ACA plans. And insurers can consider your health history.

So if you need ongoing care, take regular medications, or want targeted care, short-term plans usually aren’t a good fit.

Accident insurance makes sense if a sudden injury would strain your budget. And that’s even if you already have health insurance.

It’s often a good fit if you’re active, have kids, commute frequently, or work a physically demanding job. It can also be helpful if you have a high-deductible health plan and want extra backup for out-of-pocket costs after an accident.

If a serious diagnosis would put real strain on your finances, this coverage is worth a look. Yes, even if you already have health insurance.

It’s especially relevant if you have dependents, limited savings, a family history of serious illness, or a job where taking extended time off would be tough. It can also make sense if you simply want extra financial backup in case something life-altering happens.

It’s not a must-have for everyone. If you have strong savings, solid employer benefits, and feel comfortable handling the financial impact of a serious diagnosis on your own, you might not need it.

Yes. They are extra support, not a replacement. Health insurance handles medical care, while supplemental plans (like critical illness, cancer, and accident) pay cash for out-of-pocket costs.

If the thought of a cancer diagnosis also comes with “How would I pay for all of this?” then this coverage is worth a look.

People tend to consider cancer insurance if they’re worried about treatment costs, have a family history of cancer, don’t have a huge savings cushion, or just want extra financial backup while they focus on getting through treatment.

If you already feel solid about your savings and confident you could handle the costs on your own, you may not need it.

Health insurance helps cover your medical treatment. Cancer insurance helps cover everything around it. Like travel to specialists, time off work, childcare, and everyday bills that don’t stop during treatment.

Cancer insurance gives you money to help cover those costs. That eases the financial pressure so you can focus on getting better.

Certain types of supplementary insurance (like accident, critical illness, and cancer coverage) pay set cash amounts for covered injuries, conditions, and treatments.

The money goes straight to you, not the provider. Use it on medical bills or on recovery costs like transportation, missed work, or childcare.