Don"t Get Medical Insurance Unless You Understand These 5 Things
There are several questions you should ask before purchasing a particular insurance policy.
They include the following:
Some companies selling what appears to be health insurance are selling discount plans.
These plans can lower your cost for health care in some scenarios, but do not provide substantial coverage.
They will often use carrier names that are sound very similar to the names of well known medical insurance companies.
The best way to make sure that you are dealing with an actual health insurance company is to check with your state's department of insurance.
They will have a list of approved health insurance carriers.
You should know what a given health care insurance company covers and does not cover.
You should read the outline of coverage or brochure for any medical care insurance plan you are considering.
There will be a section that mentions the "exclusions and limitations.
" Read this section carefully.
Most of the items in this section will be the same from contract to contract.
However, this won't be 100% the case.
Make sure that you are comfortable with the things the plan doesn't cover.
You should understand how good their network is near your home.
Is your doctor in the carrier's network? If not, are there other providers in the network who are a short drive from home? Is your local hospital in their network? Will you be able to get emergency coverage when you are on vacation in another state? If you are a have a second home that you live in for extended periods of time, it is important to know if you can get your non-emergency care in taken care of in the area near both residences.
Most medical insurance contracts will cover emergency care well whether or not you use network providers.
However, many will not cover non-emergency care well if at all if the services are performed outside of the network.
You should know if a policy is well priced.
Make sure that it is competitively priced when compared to other similar medical insurance contracts from other medical care insurance carriers.
You may be surprised to know how much of a price variance there is between similar plans.
You should know whether or not a policy is priced well when the deductible and other cost shares are concerned.
This involves doing a little math.
When comparing two similar plans with different deductibles, be sure to annualize the deductible and the premiums when judging health insurance policies.
Often when we do this we are able to pick out bargains.
Although it is true that when you pay more for a policy you can expect to have a lower deductible and vice versa, you may find that the cost drops faster than the deductible rises.
Look at your net cost for health care in different scenarios.
This will help you determine whether a carrier is charging too much for a low deductible plan.
Calculate what you would pay for your health care expenses when you include not just your annualized premium and your annualized deductible and other cost shares.
You will probably find that a medium or even a high deductible plan will be your best option.
The more knowledge you have the better choices you will make regarding your health care insurance contract.
Knowing whether or not a plan meets your state's minimum standards, knowing the limitations of the plan, making sure that the network is adequate and being able to compare prices and deductibles are all important when it comes to finding the best health-care insurance policy for your family.
They include the following:
- Does the medical insurance policy meet the minimum standards?
- Do you know what is and isn't covered?
- How good is their network of hospitals?
- How well is it priced?
- Are you getting the best deductible?
Some companies selling what appears to be health insurance are selling discount plans.
These plans can lower your cost for health care in some scenarios, but do not provide substantial coverage.
They will often use carrier names that are sound very similar to the names of well known medical insurance companies.
The best way to make sure that you are dealing with an actual health insurance company is to check with your state's department of insurance.
They will have a list of approved health insurance carriers.
You should know what a given health care insurance company covers and does not cover.
You should read the outline of coverage or brochure for any medical care insurance plan you are considering.
There will be a section that mentions the "exclusions and limitations.
" Read this section carefully.
Most of the items in this section will be the same from contract to contract.
However, this won't be 100% the case.
Make sure that you are comfortable with the things the plan doesn't cover.
You should understand how good their network is near your home.
Is your doctor in the carrier's network? If not, are there other providers in the network who are a short drive from home? Is your local hospital in their network? Will you be able to get emergency coverage when you are on vacation in another state? If you are a have a second home that you live in for extended periods of time, it is important to know if you can get your non-emergency care in taken care of in the area near both residences.
Most medical insurance contracts will cover emergency care well whether or not you use network providers.
However, many will not cover non-emergency care well if at all if the services are performed outside of the network.
You should know if a policy is well priced.
Make sure that it is competitively priced when compared to other similar medical insurance contracts from other medical care insurance carriers.
You may be surprised to know how much of a price variance there is between similar plans.
You should know whether or not a policy is priced well when the deductible and other cost shares are concerned.
This involves doing a little math.
When comparing two similar plans with different deductibles, be sure to annualize the deductible and the premiums when judging health insurance policies.
Often when we do this we are able to pick out bargains.
Although it is true that when you pay more for a policy you can expect to have a lower deductible and vice versa, you may find that the cost drops faster than the deductible rises.
Look at your net cost for health care in different scenarios.
This will help you determine whether a carrier is charging too much for a low deductible plan.
Calculate what you would pay for your health care expenses when you include not just your annualized premium and your annualized deductible and other cost shares.
You will probably find that a medium or even a high deductible plan will be your best option.
The more knowledge you have the better choices you will make regarding your health care insurance contract.
Knowing whether or not a plan meets your state's minimum standards, knowing the limitations of the plan, making sure that the network is adequate and being able to compare prices and deductibles are all important when it comes to finding the best health-care insurance policy for your family.
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