Should I Purchase Individual Health Insurance Coverage?
If you’re asking yourself, “should I purchase individual health insurance coverage?” then there are a few things you need to consider. Choosing a health insurance provider and purchasing health insurance is a very important financial decision. While many believe that the cost of health insurance is too high, which may very well be true, the bottom line is that paying for your own health care can come to a much higher financial cost that could potentially cost you everything that you have. When you consider the potential for financial disaster, the purchase of individual health insurance coverage becomes a much more affordable option.
There are several options for health insurance coverage and each has their own merits in terms of value. The first thing to consider is short-term health insurance coverage. This is valuable coverage if you are starting a new job that offers health insurance as part of your benefit package, but you have to wait through a probationary period before it becomes available. It is also very affordable at about $150 a month per person. The downside to short-term health insurance is that it only covers new conditions and only in a limited capacity. While it can be renewed to up to 36 months, it does not offer long term value if you have an existing condition or a serious condition occurs during this period.
The second option available to you for your health insurance coverage is group health insurance coverage. There is a misnomer that group health insurance is always less expensive than other kinds of insurance, but this is not so. When you purchase group health your premiums reflect the possible risk of other people who also use that group health insurance plan. This means that you are paying for someone else’s lifestyle, weight and pre-exiting conditions. The benefit of group health insurance is that if you have an existing condition and are already in poor health you typically can still purchase this health insurance. Often no physicals are required to purchase group health insurance as well. It’s important to look at the cost of group insurance for this reason.
Finally, you have the option of purchasing individual health insurance. Individual health insurance has the potential of saving you the most money, especially if you are in good health. The health insurance company that you choose for your individual health insurance will require that you receive a physical. Some require that their own doctors provide the physical while others will accept a form they provide filled out by your own physician. By doing this and ensuring that you and your family are in good health your insurance company is able to offer you more affordable insurance based on your lack of risk. The higher your risk, such as whether you drink, smoke, are overweight, and your family history, the higher your premiums; the lower your risk the lower your premiums.
There is an inherent risk that you take if you choose not to purchase health insurance for your self and your family. The cost of health care increases every year. This occurs because lack of health care workers forces doctor’s offices and hospitals to pay more to entice employees to work at their health facilities. While the potential for a high paying job in the health industry is good news for doctors and nurses, for you as a patient this equals much higher costs. This means that every year it becomes more important for you to have individual health insurance for you and your family. Plus, if you wait to buy insurance until you are ill then the cost will be higher.
Choosing the right individual health insurance takes a certain amount of study. Researching the different insurance terms and learning what they mean for you will help you make a better decision when the time comes to make your choice. Comparing the various health insurance plans will also help you make an educated choice. Just like doing a car insurance comparison can save you money it is also wise to compare your health insurance options to find the plan that best meets your needs.
With the cost of health care being so high, going without health insurance ceases to be a good financial option. Looking into your options is simple. Choosing the right health insurance can save you from financial disaster and you can make good decisions about your individual health insurance by comparing many different options.
Types of Health Insurance
Preferred Provider Organization plans, or PPO plans, supply consumers with a network of health care providers. A consumer can then pick who he or she wants to see from the list. PPO plans have different types of coverage, in-network and out-of-network. In-network includes the list of health care providers in your insurance company’s network. In this network you can choose any provider for guaranteed coverage.
Visiting an out-of-network provider will be more expensive. With a PPO plan, your insurer will cover some of the cost but not as much as they would normally cover with an in-network health care provider.
Health Maintenance Organization plans, HMO plans, allow consumers to choose health care providers only from the list of in-network providers. If a consumer wants to see a doctor out of the network, they either have to pay out of their own pockets or get a referral from a doctor in their network. These plans are cheaper than PPO plans but are not as flexible.
Point of Service plans, POS plans, are a lot like PPO health insurance plans. POS plans allow you to choose a primary physician and go to that doctor for referrals out of the network. This plan also lets you go out-of-network for hospital visits and other health care needs.
Fee for Service plans, FFS plans, are a lot more flexible then any other plan but also the most expensive. Instead of picking from a network, consumers can go to any doctor and have specific medical services be covered under this health insurance policy.