AHPs are looked to by many people as an alternative health insurance to individual health insurance. It’s bought when someone doesn’t qualify for insurance through a job-based group coverage. They are an alternative to individual health plans and they look like a good idea. Being a member of an association puts you in a group which means that lower premiums can be negotiated than are readily available to individuals. Association health plans are not group plans though and as such do not have to abide by or respect the consumer’s rights that would normally apply.