Health Care Insurance – Is Some Better Than None?

About 50 years ago, medical insurance started to be an attractive incentive offered by corporations to attract and keep good employees. Overall, group plans tended to be cheapfor corporations, with workers contributing a small amount of money or none at all to secure medical insurance for themselves and their families.

It was more costly for individuals to pay for non-group policies, but coverage was fairly affordable. Then medical expenses  started to rise, people started to live longer and the medical profession became adept at curing various diseases and saving and prolonging the lives of people with serious injuries and life-threatening illnesses. Healthcareand insurance prices started rising much more quickly than annual incomes and premiums began taxing both corporations, who were paying the lion’s share of premiums, and for employees, to whom corporations often passed on expenses  through biggerdeductibles, greater out of pocket expenses and higher premiums.

According to a recent report by the MSNBC News Service, 41 percent of Americans whose income ranges from moderate to middle had no medical insurance for at least part of 2005. In 2001, that number was much lower—28 percent. Additionally, more than 50 percent of uninsured Americans in 2005 found it challenging to pay their medical bills. Another alarming statistic—28 percent of Americans in 2005 had no medical insurance, while 24 percent had none in 2001.

So, what should a person do if they don’t have any medical insurance or if they have a choice between a cheap discount plan that doesn’t cover core expenses and an cheap policy that may price a bit more but also provides much better coverage? According to data from the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the majority of people who aren’t covered for vital screening tests, such as a mammogram, colon cancer screening or a PSA test, won’t undergo those exams. Also, close to 60 percent of people without medical insurance missed treatment or did not obtain medicine needed for a chronic condition.

All of these figures point to one thing—people who lack health coverage for essential services are often unable to pay for those services, putting them at greater risk for developing new or exacerbating existent health conditions.

What should you look for in a medical insurance plan, especially when price is an issue? It is vital that you get the best coverage you can afford. Skimping on premiums can save you money upfront, but the result can prove to be penny-wise and pound-foolish. Sometimes people can’t afford coverage and sometimes they believe because they are healthy that they  don’t need it. Thus, healthy people get ill or are involved in serious accidents all the time. You never know when you’ll need coverage.

Some people opt for “catastrophic” insurance, which usually covers only major medical and hospital expenses above a specific deductible. Under such a plan, the insured pays for routine physician visits and prescription drugs. With this kind of plan, you’ll pay a low monthly premium but will also have a high deductible and limited coverage. Deductibles start at $500 per year but can be considerably more. If you obtain an cheappolicy with a $10,000 deductible and you undergo surgery that expenses  $8,000, you must pay that $8,000. If your surgery expenses  $12,000, you would owe $10,000.

One insurance company provides a plan that expenses  $29 per month for a 21 year-old, non-use of tobacco female. There’s a yearly $250 deductible and $2,500 in out of pocket expenses that the insured must pay before the policy kicks in. Hospital, surgical and x-ray expenses are covered but other expenses , such as physician visits, prescription drugs, maternity care and mental medical aren’t included. There’s a lifetime maximum of $1 million.

It is certainly a bargain, if you don’t plan on going to the physician very often. To enroll in a plan that’ll cover physician visits, prescriptions, maternity expenses and more could easily price $400 per month—a jump of $371 every 30 days for a total price of $4,800 per year!

Group medical insurance polcies, which you can usually enroll in through your employer, union or guild, are the best buy. Individual plans, especially those that offer comprehensive coverage, can be crippling to numerous people’s pocketbooks. When obtaining medical insurance, it’s vital to shop around. Your choice of what kind of plan you obtain will be determined by what you can afford and what you need as far as insurance is concerned. There’s no right or wrong choice when it comes to medical insurance but at the very least you should have catastrophic insurance.

There are basically three types of plans—Fee-For-Service, Health Maintenance Organizations  and Preferred Provider Organizationss . Fee-For-Service plans offer the most choice regarding medical providers and hospitals but they often involve quite a bit of paper work and are the most expensive. If you are willing to give up some or a lot of choice, do less paper work and save some money on premiums then either a Health Maintenance Organization or a PPO is for you.

A Health Maintenance Organization provides the least amount of choice, involves co-pays, has the least amount of paper work and is the cheapest of the three types of insurance. A PPO combines some elements of Fee-For-Service and a Health Maintenance Organization. You will have more choice than you would with a Health Maintenance Organization but less than you would with a Fee-For-Service plan. It tends to be more costly than a Health Maintenance Organization but less costly than Fee-For-Service. All three types of insurance have some aspect of Managed Care—which determines how much medical you can use—attached to them, with Fee-For-Service having the fewest restrictions and a Health Maintenance Organization being restricted the most.

<h3>When shopping for medical insurance ask the following questions—</h3>
<ul>
<li>• How much is the premium?</li>
<li>• What services are covered?</li>
<li>• What are the total deductible and out of pocket expenses per year?</li>
<li>• How much are the co-pays?</li>
<li>• What is the maximum lifetime benefit?</li>
<li>• How much freedom will you’ve when choosing medical providers and hospitals?</li>
<li>• What are the pre-approval procedures for seeing specialists, undergoing a procedure or being given a test?</li>
<li>• What prescription drugs are covered and to what degree?</li>
<li>• Is mental health covered and to what degree?</li>
<li>• Is dental covered and to what degree?</li>
</ul>
As you begin to narrow down your choices, you can look more closely at specific plans that seem to fit your needs and determinewhich offer you the best value for your dollar?

America has one of the finest medical systems in the world and one of the most complex medical insurance systems across the globe. Often, they seem to be at odds with one another, unable to communicate and work together. That can be one of the most frustrating parts of anyone’s foray into the world of medical professionals, hospitals and medical insurance corporations. For this reason alone, it’s vital that you carefully and thoughtfully choose your medical benefits provider.