Category Archives: Health Insurance
Become A Health Insurance Guru By Following These Vital Insurance Tips 2
Become A Health Insurance Guru By Following These Vital Insurance Tips
There are a lot of people out there that experience great anxiety as it becomes the right time to get health insurance, and for good reason. Whether you are looking for an individual, family, or group health insurance plan, you want to make sure that you have advice like the advice in this article to give you a good guide.
Customize your health insurance policy to meet your needs and keep your premiums as low as possible. For instance, some policies charge more for maternity care. If you are a single male, you do not need that coverage. Deleting it can reduce your premiums. Only choose the health insurance options that you need so that the cost of insurance is minimized.
Many consumers do not realize the importance staying healthy has, when applying for health insurance. Insurance companies obtain information from the Medical Information Bureau, a company which keeps track of all medical records. The MIB, as it is known in the insurance industry, has a record of all doctor visits, prescriptions and hospitalizations. When someone applies for health insurance, their premium is partially based on this medical history report.
A good health insurance tip that can save you a lot of money is to make sure your doctor only prescribes you the amount of medication you need. This is very important when trying out a new medication because you won’t even know if the medication will work for you.
A great health insurance tip is to make sure you find out what exactly your health insurance will cover. You need to know what kinds of visits your insurance will cover so that you don’t have to pay out of pocket. Sometimes they’ll only pay if your visit is medically necessary.
When children leave college their health insurance could also disappear. If your child has to take time off from college due to a medical concern, Michelle’s Law permits them 12 months to do so while still being covered by medical insurance. The leave of absence must be medically necessary, though, and you’ll have to have a doctor certify it.
See if your health insurance provider has lockable rates. Many health insurance companies offer rates you can lock into place so that your rate will remain the same, year in and out. This way you will know what to expect to pay for your insurance, and can keep your budget more under control.
Understand copays and deductibles. Look at your plan carefully, and make sure you understand exactly what is covered, and what you are responsible for. The last thing you want is a health insurance plan that doesn’t cover what you need. Take into account how much you will have to pay for each doctor’s visit and what your initial deductible is before insurance kicks in.
You never want to start shopping for health insurance without knowing what is very important to your venture first. There are several things to know about health insurance and the providers today, so make sure you use the tips in this article to get a better policy at the best time possible.
Sick Of Health Insurance Confusion? Here’s Fast Help!
Sick Of Health Insurance Confusion? Here’s Fast Help!
If you need help finding cheap health insurance quotes, look at our tips and learn how to get affordable health insurance that suits you best. Understanding how health insurance companies work is crucial when looking for the cheapest health insurance quotes. We will teach you how you can lower your premiums.
To get good health insurance rates when you don’t get insurance through an employer, affiliate yourself with a group. Group rates are the reason the health insurance rates employers offer are often so much lower. If you’re self-employed, try the Freelancers Union. Seek out any options that might be available to make sure you get affordable insurance.
Careful, some insurance plans have a maximum payout per year, or worse, a maximum lifetime payout. Be sure to check to make sure that your plan has neither, as this could be dangerously costly to you when something serious happens – be it a heart attack that needs surgery or an extended stint in the ICU.
Make sure what state laws and regulations are in place where you live. This could provide you with great information to use when seeking a health insurance policy. You may find that there are restrictions on the disqualifying factors that insurance providers are able to use when evaluating your case, helping you in various situations.
When considering a health care insurance plan from your employer, take a good look at your current plan and consider items that you might be able to change. You may be currently paying for more coverage than needed, or certain items that may now be obsolete. Take time to consider each option, what it means to you, and how much it is worth to have included in your plan.
Avoid risks! If you must purchase your own health insurance policy, it is a good idea to live a healthy lifestyle and refrain from engaging in risky activities. Those who – do not smoke, drink to excess, and who maintain a healthy weight – can enjoy lower health insurance premiums. People who engage in risky behavior or hold jobs that are considered risky may not be able to get health insurance or their premiums may be higher.
You need to get health insurance so that you are protected, in case anything happens. If you do not have health insurance and break an arm, you will have to pay for the medical bills, out of pocket. A visit to the emergency room can cost over ,000. Most people cannot afford such a hefty bill and end up in extreme financial straits because they did not have health insurance.
Your health insurance company may request information from you or send you forms to fill out whether or not you have an active claim going on. It is important that you give your insurers every possible piece of information they ask for. Missing information can form the basis of a claim denial, so make sure your insurance company gets everything they ask you for.
Learning how the insurance system works is very important when dealing with insurance companies. It is possible to have a good health insurance policy, that is both reliable and affordable. Follow our tips and you will find exactly the policy that you want, need and can count on.
How To Get Cheap Health Insurance Online In Maryland
How To Get Cheap Health Insurance Online In Maryland
For many people health insurance has become so expensive that they are forced to do without it. Unfortunately this leaves them wide open to the financially devastating effects of a catastrophic illness or a severe accident, which can wipe out a lifetime of savings and decimate other assets in the blink of an eye.
The health insurance crisis has gotten so bad that almost 17% of all Maryland residents no longer have any health coverage at all, and more than 50% of Maryland residents admit that keeping their health insurance is a severe financial burden. It won’t take much to push many of these people over the edge and create a health care nightmare.
Fortunately there are things you can do to help keep the cost of your health care down – and for many people it may be necessary to completely re-think the reason for having health care insurance in the first place.
But let’s start with a few simple things you can do to help keep your health insurance premiums as low as possible.
First, if your company offers group insurance you need to consider participating in it. Group insurance is almost always less expensive than individual health insurance.
Of course, if you are self employed or if your company doesn’t offer insurance then this won’t be an option.
Don’t smoke or use tobacco products – and if you already do, stop. The amount of money you can save on health insurance if you don’t smoke is significant. Think about it.
Consider increasing your current co-payment. Your co-payment, or copay, is the percentage of your doctor visit charges that you pay out of your own pocket, and the percentage of your lab work and other medical expenses that you pay. Increasing your copay from 25% to 50% can dramatically decrease your monthly health insurance premiums.
But even with these savings health insurance may still be too expensive for many people. Some people may be forced to re-think health insurance entirely and look at health insurance as a safety net for the protection of your assets and not as a way to pay for routine health care.
By this I mean people may want to look at purchasing a low-cost high-deductible health insurance policy. Such a policy, with a deductible of ,000 or even ,000, would pay nothing at all for your routine doctor office visits or routine lab work or most out-patient surgery. You would pay those health expenses yourself.
Where your health insurance comes into play is any time you have a major illness or a catastrophic accident, the type of medical emergency that can cost tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in just the blink of an eye.
In this way low-cost high-deductible health insurance is used only to protect your life savings, your home and other assets that you may have acquired over a lifetime.
But whether you choose to go the low-cost high-deductible route or take the more traditional path, the best place for you to get cheap health insurance is online. The multitude of health-insurance-comparison websites makes it relatively quick and easy to compare policies and prices, allowing you to create the perfect policy for your needs at a price that you can afford.
How To Save Money And Get Discount Health Insurance In Alabama
How To Save Money And Get Discount Health Insurance In Alabama
Health insurance is a big problem for most Americans, as you are probably aware. Even Alabamans who have group health insurance admit that for at least half of them their monthly premium is a severe strain on the family finances, and fully 16% of all residents of Alabama don’t have any health insurance at all due, primarily, to cost.
Obviously almost everyone here in Alabama is looking for ways to save money and get discount health insurance, and fortunately there are several things you can do, small changes you can make, that will help make health insurance more affordable.
Let’s start with kids. If you have children who are 18 or under and you can’t find a health care plan that will accept them or which you can afford there may be a solution. The state of Alabama has a program called AL-Kids which provides health care to young children at low or no-cost. In addition to AL-Kids, Alabama has several other insurance programs that cover college students, pregnant women and more.
For those people who do not qualify for any of the state-sponsored programs there are still several things you can do to lower your cost of health insurance.
Obviously group health insurance is less costly than individual health insurance. If your workplace does not offer group health insurance you still may have other alternatives. Check with any groups, clubs or organizations that you belong to – even church groups sometimes offer group health insurance. Talk to your friends about any groups, organizations or clubs they belong to which might offer group health insurance – there are a lot more of them around than you are probably aware of.
If you have a home-based business check with a health insurance agent to see if you could qualify for group health insurance. Sometimes it is possible even if your only employee is your spouse.
Don’t smoke or use any tobacco products. Smokers (and people who use chew) pay a lot more for health insurance than do non-tobacco users.
If you are overweight you are also going to pay more for your health insurance. The good news is, even if you can lose just a little weight you can sometimes drop down a rung on the insurance company’s weight chart and if that happens you could save hundreds of dollars each year on your insurance costs.
Don’t participate in dangerous or extreme sports or hobbies, and don’t drive a sporty, fast car.
How much of a co-payment can you afford to make each time you visit your doctor? You’ll have to think about this and be honest with yourself, but if you can afford a 50% co-pay then you will pay considerably less for your health coverage every month. If you see your doctor on an infrequent basis this could be an excellent way for you to save money on your health insurance.
Then there is your deductible. Again you have to consider this question carefully and you must be absolutely honest with yourself, but the more you can afford to pay each year out of your own pocket for your health care before you ask your insurance company to start kicking in, then the less you’ll pay each month in premiums.
Now get online and find at least 3 websites that are designed to let you compare prices for health insurance in Alabama from different insurance companies. Be sure to enter the same information into the forms on at least 3 different websites so that your comparisons are valid and you can be sure that you are seeing prices from as many different companies as possible.
When you’ve done that all you need to do is pick the best price and you’re done. You’ve now done about all you can to save money and get discount health insurance in Alabama.
Getting Texas Health Insurance is Easier than You Might Think
Getting Texas Health Insurance is Easier than You Might Think
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Texas leads the nation in the number of people without health insurance. Although almost one in five Americans is uninsured, it is estimated that one in three Texans are uninsured. The Texas Medical Association reports, “More than 5.5 million Texans – including 1.4 million children – lack health insurance.”
In a report issued by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, “The uninsured are a diverse group that includes people who cannot afford private health insurance; who work in small businesses that do not offer insurance; who simply choose not to purchase health insurance, even though they can afford it; who are eligible – but not enrolled – in government-sponsored programs such as Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP); and recent immigrants.” The Comptroller also noted that Texans are less likely than other Americans to receive health insurance benefits from their employers.
The most notable omission from these reports is that it’s often difficult for people to navigate the choices involved in obtaining Texas medical insurance. There are a myriad of choices and decisions to be made. Should I get individual or family coverage? Should I go with a health maintenance organization (HMO), preferred provider organization (PPO), or another type of plan? What kind of deductible should I choose?
The task of finding Texas health insurance is even more daunting because, as you go from one health insurance company to another, you find that each offers a different set of options. As a result, it’s difficult to compare the proverbial apples to apples.
Most people don’t realize that a full-service Texas-based health insurance agency can help everyone from individuals and families to small business owners and Medicare recipients understand the options that are available to them to obtain insurance. Even better, such agencies offer their services and support free of charge. This is because they are compensated by the insurance companies rather than by the insured. Therefore, you can reap the benefits of their unbiased expertise at no charge.
Best of all, some of these agencies have implemented easy-to-use online systems that allow you to obtain quotes, compare Texas health insurance plans, and even apply online – all from the comfort of your own home. In fact, you can peruse health insurance plans, life insurance plans, dental plans, and Medicare supplemental insurance plans all in one place.
In order to obtain quotes for health insurance, for example, you simply need to enter your contact information into an online form, and then provide some basic information about you and any other family members you wish to insure. The system will then generate quotes from a variety of companies, which you can compare side-by-side. You can sort the results by a number of factors, including the health insurance company, the plan type, the deductible, the co-pay, and the estimated premium. Once you decide which plan you prefer, you can apply online.
Everyday, health insurance agencies are providing a growing number of people with affordable Texas medical insurance. In turn, those who obtain health insurance rest easier knowing that they and their families are protected.
Different Types of Health Insurance in California
Different Types of Health Insurance in California
Whether you buy group or individual health insurance in California, the options you have regarding the different types of health insurance are generally the same. In some groups you can even choose from available plans. These different types are traditional health insurance, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), and preferred provider organizations (PPOs).
California goes beyond the Federal requirements for offering health insurance to its residents. Examples of this include Industry Advantage plans (IAHP), short-term health policies, Insurance for high risk Individuals and special plans for children and teens.
Additional Health Insurance in California
The traditional health care delivery system is based on a fee-for-service type of arrangement. In a fee-for-service system, you pay or each itemized medical service you receive. In the days of the frontier, “Doc” often received a chicken as payment. Today, physicians are paid with money, lots and lots of it. Fee-for-service health insurance recognizes this practice and is designed to reduce or even eliminate your duty to pay directly for your medical care. Traditional health insurance comes in three parts:
California has four basic options for choosing a health care plan:
- 1. Health through an employer or association
- 2. Health Insurance through Income eligibility such as Medicaid
- 3. Health care for high risk individuals such as those that have had cancer or a heart attack
- 4. Private Insurance
Hospitalization
Hospitalization covers defined expenses incurred while in the hospital. Generally, the insurance will pay for all of the covered services rendered by the hospital staff. However, if the insurance benefit is an indemnity payment, the payment will be for a fixed sum regardless of the actual expenses incurred. This fixed sum will usually be far below the daily charge actually made by the hospital.
Medical/surgical
This part of a traditional health plan covers the expensive costs of medical care other than the bill from the hospital. Services such as doctor visits, treatment charges, etc., are covered here. Medical/surgical usually has a deductible and requires co-payments by the insured (payments you make for charges not covered by the insurance), typically 20 percent of the doctor’s fee.
Catastrophic or major medical
There are usually lifetime maximum payments that hospitalization and medical/surgical plans will pay, after which the well runs dry. Unfortunately, these maximums may not be sufficient to pay for all of the care required if a major illness or injury should strike, since such afflictions can eat up hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars worth of health services. Thus, catastrophic coverage adds to your umbrella of protection in an amount sufficient to protect you from the horrendous expenses of such serious and prolonged illnesses. These policies also fill in some of the gaps not covered by hospitalization or medical/surgical.
Health Maintenance Organizations or Private Insurance in California
The health maintenance organization (HMO) is a relatively new player in the health insurance game, although it has been around in a limited fashion since the 1930s. The idea behind an HMO is to pay one premium and receive all of your health care at no or a nominal additional cost. The point is to save money compared to traditional health plans that cost more to purchase and require more out-of-pocket payments from the insured. What you, the insured, give in exchange for reduced cost is a substantial loss of your freedom to choose who will take care of your health needs.
Preferred Provider Organizations
Preferred provider organizations (PPOs) seek to give both the benefits of traditional health plans and the money savings of HMOs. They do this by paying higher benefits as a reward for your using the doctors or hospitals they preselect for that purpose.
Disability Insurance
Disability insurance does not pay for health care; rather it pays for lost wages caused by a disabling injury or illness.
How Health Insurance Is Priced
Ask anyone how health insurance is priced and you will get a simple answer: expensively! Beyond that, there are underwriting criteria used by health insurance providers, whether they are for-profit or, like Blue Shield/Blue Cross, nonprofit.
Underwriting Criteria
Age
The older you are, the more likely you are to get sick; therefore, the higher your health insurance premiums will be.
Number of people covered
Many people buy family coverage rather than individual policies. This means that there will be adults as well as minor children protected by the same plan. Some companies will charge based on the size of the family. Others charge a basic family rate without regard to the number of members.
Gender
Unlike life insurance, where women get the better end of the bargain than men, in health insurance women often pay higher premiums. This is based on health insurance industry statistics which indicate that the female of the species tends to need medical care more often than the male.
Health history
Insurance operates on statistical probabilities. If you have had a poor health history, statistically you are more likely to have a more expensive health care future. This, in turn, means that you will pay higher premiums-if you can get health insurance at all.
Occupation
The more likely you are to suffer injury or illness because of the work you do, the more likely the health insurance industry will be to charge excessively for benefits. This may be well and good for professional deep-sea divers. But the industry has begun to stretch the concept into areas that have nothing to do with the inherent danger of the work.
Lifestyle
In your application for health insurance you will be asked questions about your personal habits. Your answers will have a lot to do with the cost of your premiums. If you smoke, you will probably pay more for health insurance. If you drink to excess, you will probably pay more for health insurance. If you are known to be under a great deal of stress, you may pay more for health insurance. California does reward the health care Insurance consumer with lower premiums if they have practiced good health policies.
One of the most important things you can do as a health care consumer is to engage in preventive care. Not only will you be able to spot serious diseases at an early stage, thereby increasing your chances of effective treatment and cure, but you should be able to save money as well, since it is usually far less expensive to treat a disease when it’s a molehill rather than a mountain.
About The Author:
Medical-Ins.com is a leading broker of health insurance in California. We provide detailed information and cost breakdowns of Blue Cross, PacifiCare California and many more. Visit our site for a free quote and to help sort through the various health insurance plans to find the more affordable option for your family.