If you live in a household with more than one child, chances are you may find it a little difficult to make ends meet. The prices of many products and necessities today never seem to go down, and there are numerous monthly expenses that need to be taken care of for the average American family. But what if an unlikely even occurs, and one of your family members gets sick or requires medical attention, do you think you will be prepared for it?
This is where health insurance comes in. Health insurance is considered as an investment, and is perhaps your best bet in preparation for any medical emergency that you or your family may get involved in. Health insurance is important to your family, in more ways than you can imagine. Depending on the coverage or policy which you have applied for, your insurance company should be helping you take care of your expenses in case you get hospitalized. You may also be entitled to receive compensation for medicines, surgery, tests, and other treatments.
How else is family health insurance important for a family? Think about it this way, if you encounter an accident, and are too grief-stricken about the event, will you still be able to worry about your expenses? Family health insurance provides you with the aid you need, so you can recover from your medical state, as well as recover from your financial crisis.
How do you get health insurance for your family? Sources explain that you have one of two options: to get individual health plans for each member, or you can opt to apply for group health insurance to cover your family. Individual health plans can be tailored specific for each member, as some people in your family may need more medical assistance than others. However, most families apply for group health insurance because the cost is generally lower than having individual plans for each family member. You can check out the insurance sites online, answer their basic assessment questionnaires, and instantly get a free quote to help you estimate your yearly insurance costs.
One thing you might not know about health insurance, that you should know, is what the insurers call adverse selection. Adverse selection is the theory that people who are unhealthy are more likely to want to buy health insurance. Taken to an extreme, adverse selection would make the insurance industry unprofitable and eventually bankrupt. This is unique in the United States, as most other countries in the work have public health care, not privatized health care.
What the insurers have done to protect themselves from adverse selection is to pre-screen new customers for potential health issues. If you are found to be a higher risk than average you may be given a higher premium, or even denied coverage altogether. You’ll also hear about how pre-existing conditions are not covered by a new policy. This means that if you’re unhealthy, you better stay covered with your existing policy, or you risk ending up with no coverage or coverage for everything except what you need to be covered.
Posts Tagged ‘Insurance’
Is Health Insurance Important To Your Family?
Monday, March 15th, 2010How To Buy Health Insurance And Not Empty Your Walet
Sunday, March 14th, 2010If you thought buying life insurance was tough, just wait until you shop around for health coverage. Unlike an employer sponsored plan that has to accept everyone at the same price, private plans in most states are underwritten based on your age, weight, smoking status and health history.
In some cases, applicants will even have to undergo a medical exam. A preexisting condition as common as asthma could be enough for an insurer to hike your premiums, while a history of anxiety or depression might cause an underwriter to think twice.
And if you have a history of heart disease, cancer or diabetes, you could be out of luck entirely. A plan could either be too expensive or include a rider that excludes the very ailment for which you need coverage. If they look at your application and see something they don’t like, a $600 [a month] policy could go to $850, says Richard Reichmann, Florida Isnurance Broker.
You should also know that health insurance is regulated at the state level. In places like New York, New Jersey and Vermont, insurers must offer coverage to every applicant, regardless of age or health status. This egalitarian approach sounds great until you see the premiums.
Even young healthy men, who are the cheapest to insure, could be charged as much as $1,000 a month, says Reichmann. In other states, such as California and Florida, there are fewer restrictions on the insurers, and premiums tend to be more reasonable for young people and pricier for older folks. The problem in these regions is that insurers can outright refuse to provide coverage. In such cases, consumers can buy pricy policies from a state high-risk pool.
But it won’t come cheap, and it could exclude pre-existing conditions. For more information on the rules for your area, contact your state insurance commission’s Web site.
If you have the option to sign up for COBRA (a federal law that requires certain employers to provide former employees with the option to purchase health insurance), do it. In nearly all circumstances, it’s smarter to keep your former employer’s health plan for the full 18 months. Yes, paying the entire premium out of your pocket may be steep, but it’s usually cheaper than buying it on your own.
Before you exhaust your COBRA, start shopping around for your next plan. The quickest way to get a handle on your options is to look for policies on If you need a little more hand holding, you should contact a local insurance broker. (Contact the National Association of Health Underwriters for a listing of local brokers in your area.)
Just make sure you find someone who represents a lot of companies and understands the underwriting standards for each insurer. The last thing you want is to be rejected from a plan that doesn’t typically cover someone with your health profile. Not only is it a waste of time, but it could also raise a red flag when you apply to other insurers. An informed broker could steer you away from such insurers.
And since group coverage tends to be cheaper, don’t forget to check with your professional trade association for coverage. The Writers Guild and the Actors’ Equity Association are two examples of groups that offer their members health insurance. (In most states, however, people in their 20s and 30s may find cheaper coverage through an individual plan.) And for those starting a business: Most states allow as few as two employees to buy a small group policy.
One way to keep premiums manageable is to increase your deductible (don’t go beyond what you can afford to pay out each year) and skip the vision and dental coverage. Don’t even try to match your former employer’s lush plan. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, for example, charges a young family of four living in suburban Chicago $636 a month in premiums and a $250 deductible. If they accept a deductible of $1,750, they can lower the premium to $415 a month.
Insurance should be purchased to cover sudden accidental and unintended losses. With low-deductible plans and maintenance policies, you are trading dollar for dollar with the insurance company over the long run.
While there are some benefits you can live without, others are important. A maternity rider is one of them. I advise all of my female clients to get one. Unlike employer-sponsored plans, which usually cover birthing expenses, private plans don’t unless you pay for it upfront.
Even if you decide to start a family in a few years, it may be too late to add the coverage. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee, for example, won’t let a woman add the benefit after she initially purchases a policy unless she submits an official notification of change in status and gets married.
Before you make your final decision, read the fine print. Make sure you’re buying comprehensive coverage that will cover you should you suddenly fall ill and rack up thousands in hospitals bills. Insurers have been known to attract customers with low teaser rates that can change after only a few months. It may cost a little more, but you should look for one that will guarantee your premiums won’t rise for 12 months. And most important, go with a reputable firm. Check its claims-paying ability rating with an agency like Standard & Poor’s or Moody’s.
Buying health insurance may not top your list of fun things to do, but that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. After all, there are few things in life more valuable than good health.
Arizona Health Insurance Leads
Sunday, March 14th, 2010
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Health Insurance – Comparing Health Insurance Plans
Friday, March 12th, 2010Health insurance coverage can be very confusing. The majority of Americans are able to get some sort of group health coverage through their employer, which makes the process very simple. Do you want the coverage or not? Yes, I want the coverage. But for the rest of us, we have to search, fill out forms, compare 20 companies, compare 100’s of plans and get extremely disgusted with the process. Do you really know what youýre comparing? Here’s some help.
Comparing Health Insurance companies. Look for companies you know. There are 100’s of fly-by-night companies out there trying to rip people off. Companies like, Blue Cross, Aetna and Humana have been around for many years and will be around when you need them.
Comparing Health Insurance plans. Do you know the difference between PPO (preferred provider organization) & HMO (health maintenance organization). A PPO is a network of doctors that accept a particular insurance plan. With a PPO, you have in-network and out-of-network benefits. Basically you have better cover in-network. You can see any doctor in-network at any time without needing a referral. On the other hand, with an HMO you will need a referral to see any other doctor than your primary physician. Conclusion, you have better control of your healthcare with a PPO plan. Also, there are not very many HMO’s left. Most companies only offer PPO plans.
Comparing Health Insurance benefits. Deductible, doctor copay, coinsurance, prescription copay, there are a lot of different options. This is the simplest way to explain it. When you go to the doctor, you pay your doctor’s office copay. This is the same for prescriptions. Any services done out-side of the doctors office like lab work, x-ray and outpatient surgery are not covered under the copay. Your deductible is per member per year. So, everything that is not covered by the copay, you will pay out-of-pocket until you meet your deductible. Then you pay your coinsurance, usually 20-30%. Once you meet your coinsurance maximum, the company will pay 100%. Your coinsurance maximum is usually 3 times your deductible.
It sounds like you are not get very much benefit form the insurance, but you have to remember what insurance is really intended to do. Insurance is intended to protect you, in the event of a catastrophe, from losing your life savings or filing for bankruptcy.
My personal advice is, and this is what I tell my clients…Get a health insurance policy that you can comfortably afford. If you are in good health and never go to the doctor, get a higher deductible plan with limited doctor’s office benefit. If you are in poor health, or you have a young child that goes to the doctor often, get a plan with a lower deductible and better doctor’s office benefit. Sound like common sense right? Well, it is. You need health insurance coverage, so get something you can afford and trust.Texas Health Insurance
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