Top 10 Insurance Panels Every Healthcare Provider Should Join in 2025

In 2025, one of the wisest things that you can do in terms of expanding your medical practice is to join the appropriate insurance panels. These panels also assist you in seeing a paid patient who has insurance. When you are a new provider or establishing a private practice, being kicked in by the top payers means access to more members and patients, more revenue and a better name. 

However, it may not be an easy task to find out which ones of the numerous insurance companies are worth their value. This is why we developed this guide that will assist you in selecting the optimal insurance networks to assist your practice in 2025.

What Are Insurance Panels?

An insurance panel refers to a list of practitioners, allowed to work with a health insurance company. In-network provider: When a panel is on a panel, they are referred to as in-network provider. This implies that your insurance company will pay part of your services, and thus patients are more willing to go to you than others. The greatest majority of people today would want to see providers who accept their insurance. They might not look at you even when you provide the best care when you are not in any of the panels.

It also helps in becoming an insurance panel member, you receive more trust, new patients, and long-term relationships. It also implies that you will have constant profits, as insured patients tend to deliver to providers on the net list.

How We Chose These Top 10 Panels

Insurance panels need not be the largest company that is chosen. We examined so many aspects, how good the company pays, is it easy to receive payments, how quick claims get processed, and numbers and numbers of patients they cover. This will help you know how each panel 12 compliments the various provider types such as doctors, nurse practitioners, and mental health professionals also were considered.

1. Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS)

Blue Cross Blue Shield is one of the most reputable names of the healthcare industry. It is a huge national chain and serves millions of patients. The BCBS is a good place to start whether you are a family doctor, specialist or therapist. Nearly every state has its own BCBS program, thus there are a lot of patients with BCBS both in rural and urban locations. Their charges are usually reasonable and the patients have confidence in the name.

2. UnitedHealthcare

UnitedHealthcare is among the biggest health insurance providers in America. It attends to patients throughout the 50 states. The tools used in this company to make claims and prior authorizations are powerful digitally. They tend to open their panels to numerous levels of providers and good pay rates in many regions. They also feature employer plans, Medicare advantage, and Medicaid, which makes them worthy to every form of practice.

3. Aetna

Aetna is a leading facility provider paying attention to mental health and primary care. Aetna is a broad health plan that covers large employer-based and individual health care. Aetna is also easy to deal with by many therapists and psychiatrists. The company is well established in the major cities as well as little towns. Aetna may be one of the crucial members of your panel list, in case you are a mental health specialist or a provider of chronic care.

4. Cigna

Cigna is urban-based and pays attention to the prevention, chronic and behavioral health. They have good online tools that are constructed to accommodate modern practices. They also provide strong support to providers in the form of education, portals and billing assistance. Cigna is an intelligent decision in case the specialist or mental health provider decides to collaborate with a large payer and access more covered patients.

5. Humana

Humana is at the top of the Medicare Advantage plans, which are excellent to providers of older adults. They are powerful in the South and Midwest as well as provide good rates. Humana is worth your time in case you have a senior-focused practice or otherwise are seeking to expand your Medicare practice. They have panels that tend to be open and their credentialing is an easy process when brought at an early stage.

6. Tricare

Tricare is a Tricare plan which covers military family members, veterans, and service members. Tricare is a great payer that is not taken seriously by many providers. The billing system is not chimerical and the patients are loyal. Tricare can be a wonderful addition to you in case you intended to treat military families and enlarge your stable of patients.

7. Molina Healthcare

Molina is associated with Medicaid plans and marketplace plans with particular emphasis on underserved markets. It is operating in most states and frequently collaborates with community clinics. You can consider joining Molina as a panel, especially in case you work with low-income patients or reside on the territory with a high number of Medicaid patients.

8. Anthem

One of the biggest BCBS-affiliated companies is known as Anthem. It is spread across numerous states and serves individual plans as well as group plans. It is said that Anthem collaborates with numerous varieties of providers, including specialists and general practitioners. They are an ideal choice of emerging, as well as young, practices because of their size and support.

9. Medicare (CMS)

It is mandatory that any provider who provides services to older adults should have medicare. It is nationwide insurance for individuals aged beyond 65 and the individuals who have disabilities in a specific manner. Being on the Medicare panel can assist you in developing your practice and increasing the numbers of patients in care. Medicare is an agency of CMS and operates on PECOS enrolment. It forms the basis of a majority of medical activities.

10. Medicaid (State-Based)

Medicaid has low-income patients, children, and people with disabilities insurance that runs state-wise. Every state has a Medicaid system and you must apply by each one separately. You need Medicaid in case you are a pediatrician, a behavioral health provider, or a clinic serving the community. This might be time-consuming but it assists in touching more patients who need help.

How to Apply for Insurance Panels

In order to be on insurance panels, you should go through the credentialing. This covers you providing your details in CAQH ProView, obtaining an NPI number, the process of enrolling in PECOS to practice in Medicare, and completion of payer specific forms. It may require up to 60 to 120 days or even longer, that is why one should plan it. Credentialing services make this easier and many providers prefer to take this route.

Benefits of Joining Multiple Panels

By becoming a member of more insurance panels, you will receive access to additional patients. You diversify your risk as well. In case of delay in claims by one payer, the rest might not. The multiple panels make your schedule full, your reputation as well as incomes steady. When you accept your patients insurance, they are more likely to book with you and thus your panel list becomes one of your biggest business assets.

Conclusion

Decisions on the selection of the right combination of insurance panels in 2025 can alter the future of your practice. Our 10 best discussed panels provide well developed networks, decent salaries and large patient scope. Whether it is Medicare and BCBS or Cigna and Molina, all are worthwhile. Get started early, get your application right and think about a credentialing partner to give you the boost. 

 FAQs:

Q1. What is an insurance panel?

Insurance panel simply means a list of medical care providers who have been employed by an insurance company to offer their services to the company members. Because you will be a panel member, you will be an in-network provider and this will enable more access of your care to your patients and a good reimbursement to the services provided.

Q2: Why did I join various insurance panels?

You will have better access to patients, an increased exposure and stability in the income earned, by being involved in several panels. It also spreads your risk in case one payer is slow in paying or covering a minimal amount.

Q3: How long does it take to be credentialed with the insurance companies?

The credentialing process can again pass 60-120 days or even can become a longer process depending on the payer and the overall completeness of your application. Some closed panels might not be timely.

Q4: Can I do credentialing myself?

Yes you can self credential, you can make the necessary applications to individual insurance companies, manage your CAQH portfolio. However, in an attempt to save their time, eliminate delays, and minimize the number of their medical errors, some providers would like to utilize credentialing service instead.

Q5: What happens in such a case that my application to a panel is declined?

Even though you are denied, you get an opportunity to appeal or re-apply after rectifying the error. Reasons for denial tend to be in most cases absence of documents, full profile in CAQH or closed panel. The practitioners in the credentialing sector might help in dealing with them.