Health Insurance Quotes
Posted on 30. Jul, 2010 by Libby in Insurance
With nearly 20% of all Americans lacking proper medical benefits, it is more important than ever to find out what health insurance is available and how it might benefit you. Although health insurance might seem like a luxury in these difficult times, buy using some hard data and a little bit of common sense you can find affordable health care. A few hours spent researching health insurance quotes is certainly preferable to being left without a safety net during an emergency.
In the United States, 60% of all health insurance is provided through employer coverage. However, due to the economic recession, many companies are cutting or all together eliminating health care benefits for their employees. With that in mind, understanding public and private options for health care is of the utmost importance.
Public options are government funded programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare is offered only to seniors in the United States over the age of 65 and represents one of the largest government investments in national health care. Medicaid insurance is a program jointly run by the federal government and individual states. It is only offered to the poor and generally does not provide full coverage. For most US citizens, neither of these will pick up coverage lost due to workplace benefit cuts.
Private options are the many varieties of for-profit insurance. Only 9% of all US residents buy into private insurance without the aid of their workplace. Depending on age and health history, private insurance can be quite expensive. However, with so many different options there is often at least one that will meet the needs of even a regular family that is strapped for cash.
An average family will pay $10,000 per year for a decent health insurance policy. However, many health insurance quotes are significantly lower for individuals. Although it can be somewhat risky, premiums can also be lowered by agreeing to higher co-pays on doctor’s visits and prescription drugs. Be careful, however: this might provide cheaper insurance but it could leave you seeing little change in your medical bills unless a procedure is particularly expensive.
With just under 50% of all bankruptcy filings being the result of medical expenses, planning ahead for major medical emergencies is vital. When looking for individual health insurance, don’t let major medical expenditures slip your mind. Chemotherapy, hospital stays, emergency surgery, organ transplants and other procedures can be extremely expensive. Don’t let your insurance company get out of paying for your treatment – make sure your policy has these and other major ailments covered before you sign on the dotted line.
Every year, the government has threatened to provide better, more affordable health care. For many, there is no time to wait to see if their promises will hold water. For the millions of uninsured in the United States, insurance can not wait. Take some time, study the literature, and pay attention to the prices in the health insurance quotes. Affordable coverage might be easier than you expected.
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