Surest Group Health Plans in Illinois

Surest is a UnitedHealthcare subsidiary — formerly known as Bind Benefits — that offers one of the most fundamentally different approaches to group health plan design available in the Illinois employer market. The core concept is simple but radical: eliminate deductibles and coinsurance entirely and replace them with flat, predictable copays for every covered service. Employees know exactly what they will pay before they schedule any appointment or procedure. No deductible accumulation. No coinsurance calculations. No surprise bills after the fact.

How Surest’s Model Works

In a traditional health plan, an employee who needs surgery faces a confusing cascade of cost-sharing: they pay toward their deductible first, then coinsurance kicks in, then they hope the out-of-pocket maximum limits their exposure. The actual cost is often unknowable until the EOB arrives weeks after the procedure.

Surest eliminates this complexity entirely:

• No deductibles: Coverage begins from the first dollar of every claim. There is no deductible to meet before insurance pays.
• No coinsurance: Members never pay a percentage of the total bill. They pay a fixed, known copay amount.
• Flat copays for everything: Whether it is a primary care visit, an MRI, a specialist consultation, or a surgical procedure, each service has a specific copay amount that is published and searchable in advance.
• Upfront cost visibility: Before scheduling any appointment, members can look up the exact copay they will owe at any in-network provider for any covered service using the Surest app.

Surest’s Cost-Transparency Technology

The Surest member app is the centerpiece of the member experience. Employees use it to:

• Search any procedure, test, or service and see the exact dollar copay they will owe
• Compare copay amounts across different in-network providers for the same service (helping employees choose high-value care settings)
• Find in-network physicians, hospitals, and urgent care centers
• Review their coverage and benefits summary
• Track their year-to-date medical spending

This price transparency can shift member behavior in cost-effective ways. When an employee can see that an MRI at an outpatient imaging center costs less in copay than the same MRI at a hospital outpatient department, many will choose the lower-cost setting voluntarily. This “consumerism” effect can reduce total plan costs for employers and out-of-pocket costs for employees simultaneously.

Employer-Sponsored Only

Surest is exclusively available as an employer-sponsored group health plan. It cannot be purchased on the individual market or the ACA marketplace. This means it is only an option if your organization is sponsoring a group health benefit for employees. Surest is not compatible with HSA accounts because it does not meet the IRS high-deductible health plan requirements (there is no deductible at all).

Network Access

Surest leverages UnitedHealthcare’s provider network for in-network coverage in Illinois. The UnitedHealthcare® network includes most major Illinois health systems and a broad physician panel in the Chicago metropolitan area and downstate markets. Out-of-network coverage is available for emergencies but not for routine or elective care, which incentivizes members to use the in-network provider directory.

Is Surest Right for Your Organization?

Surest is an excellent fit for Illinois employers who:

• Want to eliminate the confusion and anxiety employees feel about deductibles and coinsurance
• Have employees who frequently avoid care due to uncertainty about out-of-pocket costs
• Want to differentiate their benefits package with a genuinely unique offering
• Have a workforce that engages readily with technology and mobile apps

Surest is available to employer groups of various sizes through UnitedHealthcare. Contact Illinois Health Agents to determine if Surest is available for your group’s size and Illinois location, and to compare it against traditional plan designs.