The analysis provides facts on actual premiums paid for individual healthinsurance and the nature of accompanying plan benefits. The research, basedon a nationwide sample of over 227,000 individual and family (IFP) majormedical policies that were purchased through eHealthInsurance and active inAugust 2007, revealed the following insights:

-- The average monthly premium for individual policies was $158

-- The average premium for family policies was $366

-- The average deductible for individual policies was $1,972

-- The average deductible for family policies was $2,610

-- The majority of family policies had annual premiums between $3,400and $4,650

-- Half of all individual policy holders paid less than $130 per monthfor monthly premiums

-- More than half of all family policy holders paid less than $300 permonth for monthly premiums

-- Women paid, on average, 18% more than men did for individual healthinsurance premiums

-- The average plan lifetime limit was $3.9 million(1)

-- A vast majority of individual and family policyholders had lab x-ray, emergency, prescription and chiropractic coverage

"With high unemployment and the nationwide economic crisis, Americans arenow, more than ever, seeking cost-effective health insurance," said GaryLauer, president and CEO of eHealth, Inc. "The good news is that there areoptions. This is especially critical for those seeking alternatives tocostly COBRA coverage. For consumers, health insurance isn't adiscretionary item, but rather something they need and can afford throughthe individual market."

Women paying more than men, on average

The new analysis shows that on average, women are paying 18% more than menfor individual health insurance premiums. Among major medical plans sold toindividuals, women paid an average of $171 per month, compared to theaverage monthly premium of $145 paid by men.

Premiums vary widely across U.S. states, regions

The range of average monthly premiums in 2007 for individual plans acrossthe United States was between $83 in North Dakota and $388 for New Yorkresidents, representing a monthly disparity of $305, or $3,660 per year.Regionally, the Northeast had the highest average monthly premium forindividuals, at $239, while the Midwest had the lowest at $130. In theWest, eHealthInsurance members paid on average $150 per month for anindividual plan, while those in the South paid an average of $154 permonth.(2)

Children's plans continue to be affordable

The report found that in 2007, sixty percent of children's plans hadmonthly premiums of $100 or less, with an average monthly premium of $92for individual children. Individual health insurance for children is animportant and affordable option for families that may be shouldering alarger -- potentially more expensive -- portion of the dependent premiumwith employer-based health insurance.

New data on Health Savings Accounts

New to the evaluation this year is data on eHealthInsurance members thathave chosen an HSA-eligible plan. Of the 227,000 plans surveyed, 14 percentwere HSA-eligible plans. Of these plans, the average premium for anindividual plan was $133 and the average premium for a family plan was$302. The majority of HSA-eligible plan holders were between the ages of 25and 44 years old.

The first Cost and Benefits of Individual Health Insurance Plans study wasissued by eHealthInsurance in 2001, and in the past the company hascommissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct an analysis on their behalf.eHealthInsurance is one of the few organizations with national source datathat can best reflect consumer buying patterns and purchase prices in theindividual health insurance market. More data on premiums, deductibles andmajor medical benefits can be found in the report atwww.eHealthInsurance.com/AboutUs/News/Reports.

Methodology

The 2007 plan data referred to in the The Cost And Benefits Of IndividualAnd Family Health Insurance Plans report is derived from over 227,000individual and family (IFP) major medical policies purchased througheHealthInsurance that were active in August 2007. The report analyzesmonthly premiums paid on individual and family major medical healthinsurance policies in 2005, 2006, and 2007, along with the benefitsassociated with those plans. For more information on methodology, pleaserefer to the report at www.eHealthInsurance.com/AboutUs/News/Reports.

About eHealth

eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) is the parent company of eHealthInsurance, thenation's leading online source of health insurance for individuals,families and small businesses. Through the company's website,www.ehealthinsurance.com, consumers can get quotes from leading healthinsurance carriers, compare plans side by side, and apply for and purchasehealth insurance. eHealthInsurance offers thousands of health plansunderwritten by more than 180 of the nation's leading health insurancecompanies. eHealthInsurance is licensed to sell health insurance in all 50states and the District of Columbia. eHealthInsurance and eHealth areregistered trademarks of eHealthInsurance Services, Inc.

Footnotes:

(1) This average applies only to policies with specified limits. Samplesize was over 125,000 individual and family plans. Plan data that did notindicate a lifetime limit were excluded from this sample.

(2) Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont were excluded from the regionalbreakout for the Northeast because eHealthInsurance did not sell individualand family major medical plans in these states at the time the data forthis report was collected. Rhode Island was also not included in theregional breakout for the Northeast because the sample size was too smallto extrapolate insights to the larger population.

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For more information, please contact:Brian MastDirector of Public RelationseHealth, Inc.brian.mast@ehealth.com(415) 609-8484 (cell)Sande DrewSenior Media ConsultanteHealth, Inc.sande.drew@ehealth.com(916) 207-7674 (cell)