Here's our perspective. Otherwise healthy hubby was hit with medical disaster toward the end of our first year on the Advantage plan. He should have gone to Shands or Moffitt Tampa, but could not because neither was covered on the Advantage plan. We ended up at Ocala Regional and, happily, the treatment there was successful. Knowing that his problem would be recurring, and since it happened be open enrollment, I was able to change his coverage to a supplemental plan (still UHC) effective in January of the following year - so just a few months from his original treatment.
We were very fortunate that the timing was such that we could make this change. We probably could not have changed to any other plan, but UHC has a provision (or did at that time) that allows one to change from Advantage to Supplemental within the first two years.
So, yes, the copays were substantial for the first few months and non-existent once he was on the supplemental plan. But the primary reason for our change was the freedom to see any doctor, anywhere, anytime. He would not have been able to get the kind of treatment he is now receiving if that was not the case. None of us knows when something like that might happen.
(Don't take my word for the ability to switch; that was some time ago and may or may not still be the case.)
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