Myths About Health Insurance

As you know with escalating medical costs and hospitalization expenses, individuals like you are eager to procure a good health insurance cover.  You definitely are on the right path but with so much diverse information doing the rounds it can certainly leave you confused.  Let us take a look at some myths regarding health insurance and try to understand the correct facts.

You would have definitely heard that employer sponsored health insurance plans are more affordable.  It is quite true people are attracted by it since the employers provide group health insurance and your family also gets covered.  It provides immense relief to you once you know that the health of your family is safe and being taken care of.  You would be surprised to know that even in an employer sponsored health plan there would be certain percentage of deductions from your salary as a contribution for health insurance.  The moment the health insurance companies increase their premiums, there would also be an increase in the deductions from your salary.

You would have heard people saying that health insurance companies are profit driven and hence they charge huge premiums.  But this is not true.  You would be well aware that even a minor ailment nowadays cost a lot of money.  For example, if you have problems with your tonsils and if they have to be removed, then the cost of the operation costs a good five thousand dollars.  This coupled with another one thousand five dollars if you need to stay overnight in the hospital.  The point was emphasized to explain how expensive the hospitalization costs are.

It has always been believed that the highest number of people without a health insurance cover is those under the age of twenty five.  You would be surprised to know that the majority of individuals between the age group of fifty and sixty five are the ones without the health insurance cover.  The reason is quite obvious.  Most of the youngsters are always in great health and the insurance companies are more than willing to provide them with health cover.  In the case of individuals over the age of fifty, many have a pre-medical condition and thus the insurance companies are reluctant to provide health cover.

There is also a general view that the Federal law COBRA is more expensive whereas the short term individual health plans are more affordable.  This is not true.  The Federal law COBRA is a wonderful facility wherein you can continue with the health cover of your previous employer even after you leave the job.  In the case of short term individual health plan, if you have a pre-medical condition, the insurance company may simply refuse to provide you with a health cover or may charge a very high premium.  But in the case of COBRA, even if you have a pre-medical condition, you continue to be covered under the health cover.

You must also remember, the big companies always do not provide health cover and you must make proper arrangements to stay insured.

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College Student Health Insurance Plans

Plenty of times, you along with other parents like you tend to assume that college going students are a healthy lot.  True, in their young age, the college students are quite active and tend to have a better body immunity.  But, as a parent you must always exercise caution and ensure that your child is covered by appropriate health insurance.  You would be surprised to know that the largest growing population in the country is the college and university students in the age group between nineteen and twenty nine years.

The total number of Americans living without health insurance account for a whopping forty seven million.  Out of this a good thirteen million are the ones going to colleges and universities.  Your child is at a great risk if he is not covered by a health insurance.  Always remember, even a single incidence of major illness can leave you bankrupt due to very high medical costs and hospitalization expenses.  If you are covered by the health insurance plan of your employer, your child too automatically gets covered till he reaches the age of nineteen.

Sometimes, the health insurance cover provided by your employer may also cover your child till he reaches the age of twenty four or till he graduates from the college.  The only pre-requisite here is that your child needs to be a full time college going student.  Some states have come up with certain laws wherein your child continues to be covered by a health insurance irrespective of whether he is a full time college going student or not.

Another easy way your child can be covered by a suitable health insurance cover is through the health plan provided by the college.  Definitely, you can save a lot of money since plenty of medical costs would be taken care by the colleges.  The various facilities and benefits of the health insurance cover differ among different colleges and each college has a tie up with a particular insurance company to cater to their specific needs.

One of the main advantages for the college students are if they visit a health center affiliated to the college then they can seek free medical help.  But, the only thing you need to remember is not all medical services are free and you need to make appropriate provisions for your child in case of medical emergency.  Even in the health centers affiliated to the colleges, students would have to pay for medical services like X-rays, physiotherapy, body injuries, infant care, newborn baby care, AIDS and STD testing, checking the cholesterol levels and other important medical tests.

In case your child has a pre-medical condition, it would be very easy to obtain a health insurance cover for your child under the employer sponsored health plan.  The same may not be the case with the college health plan.  The college has every right to refuse medical treatment in case your child is found to have a pre-medical condition.  Some states have a provision wherein your child’s pre-medical condition can be waived off, once it has completed six months attending the college.  Hence, there are a lot of provisions, but you need to go through all the terms and conditions properly in order to ensure that your child gets the best health cover under the college student health insurance plans.

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Self Employed Individual Health Insurance

You would be amazed to find that those who work as employees for companies or business enterprises always tend to seem more happy and relaxed than those who are self employed and why not?  The individuals working as employees do not have to worry about their next meal.  Primarily, there are two reasons which make them very comfortable.  As you already know, their health insurance is covered by their employers and they receive their monthly salaries on time.  Here we’ll discuss the importance of health insurance for self employed individuals, and ways to get affordable health insurance for self employed individuals and their families.

You would be astonished to find that a good 26 percent of the American population is without health insurance.  The majority of the individuals without the health insurance cover are those who are self employed.  Many self employed individuals do not opt for health insurance cover due to high costs.  You as an entrepreneur would understand that in business the returns and profits are not uniform.  The overhead costs like those of maintaining the office and paying the salaries of your employees can cause severe financial strain.

But remember, not opting for health insurance can put your and your family’s health and life at great risk.  As you are aware, a majority of the bankruptcies in America are caused due to the inability of the individuals to pay the medical costs.  A single major illness to any member of the family can leave you bankrupt.  The treatment for a major illness at a hospital may run in to thousands of dollars and wash out all your savings.  It may also push you in to severe debt.  So, what do you do? Do not despair. Continue Reading »
Health Insurance for Self Employed

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