Premiums are only one part of your total healthcare expenses. When deciding on a plan, you also want to take into consideration how much healthcare services will cost under that plan. All-In-Cost is exactly this: it is an estimate of the total anticipated yearly cost, including both premiums and out-of-pocket expenses under different scenarios.
To calculate All-In-Cost for each plan, Zorro asks you to indicate what level of healthcare services you anticipate needing during the plan year. We then forecast certain prices for each of those services, and calculate how much the total would cost under each plan. We do this using the cost-shares articulated in each plan’s SBC document.
The All-In-Cost is always an estimate, because it assumes a specific set of healthcare services (which always differs from reality, even if you believe you know in advance exactly what services you will need). It also assumes a single price for each service, which can also vary significantly depending on the healthcare provider or facility you use.
Still, All-In-Cost is an important way to think about healthcare costs holistically. Oftentimes, lower premiums can mean significantly higher costs later when utilizing a health plan, and All-In-Cost is meant to help you take this into account.
