Health Insurance Tips for Self-employed Business Owners

Those whose jobs include health insurance benefits have it easy. The company that employs them pays a portion of their premiums. But what if you’re your own boss, if you’re not working for someone else? If you are one of those courageous self-employed individuals, or you’re planning on starting your own business either now or after retirement, this article will give you useful tips on how you can enjoy affordable self-employed health insurance even after quitting your current job.

Hold on to your earlier plan under COBRA
The best option for continuing to enjoy your employer-sponsored health insurance for some time even after leaving your job is through COBRA – the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986.

COBRA allows people to extend their current health insurance coverage at permissible group rates for 18 months maximum after leaving their jobs, provided that their former company has 20 or more employees and they weren’t fired from their jobs for incompetence or gross negligence. More information on COBRA coverage can be obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor.

The down side to this plan is that as a self-employed individual, you will have to bear the entire cost of the insurance coverage. This will be a lot higher than what you might have been paying as a company employee. The Kaiser Family Foundation states that employees usually pay just 28% of their health insurance costs.

Decrease your premium cost in advance
This will require planning ahead of time. Before leaving your job, try and join the most economical health insurance plan made available by your company during the period of open enrollment that is closest to your quitting date. This will ensure a lower insurance premium to be paid later under COBRA.

Act before the time limit expires
Your COBRA eligibility ends after 180 days, and the law guarantees you the benefit of health insurance provided that you seek coverage under a brand new policy within a span of 63 days after that. Continue Reading »
Self-employed Health Insurance

Critical illness insurance – its role in your life

Life is unpredictable and one must be prepared to face it.  Good moments in life are always accompanied by the difficult ones.  One enjoys the good times and does not think about any unforeseen circumstances that are likely to happen and hence there are times when one is unprepared to face life.

The biggest uncertainty in a person’s life is health and the toughest times are those when you or any of your family members is suffering from a critical illness.  A family with no insurance or a limited insurance which is also just not enough to pay off the bills is subjected to most critical risks during these times.  In such cases it is every penny going out of your home without any help coming in!  This justifies the reason why a Critical Illness Insurance is a must have at every home.

But what prevents us from going for a critical health insurance?  One would simply be the fact that there is a clear lack of understanding amongst the people about what a critical illness such bacterial meningitis, brain tumor or a leukemia may be.  And secondly, even when one hears or reads about it, these are actually not matters which we want to give time to think or acquire information about.

As a rule, it is necessary for every family to have themselves covered under health insurance.  Now that seems to be the simple one.  However is critical illness insurance a simple one too?  The answer is NO.  For finding the right critical illness insurance cover one needs to invest loads of time and do complete research.  The basic reason behind this is the fact that finally the insurance company is going to pay the insured a lump sum tax free amount immediately after any such critical illness is identified.

Critical illness insurance – is it a waste for money?

Yes, critical illness insurance is more costly than a life insurance, Continue Reading »
Critical Illness Insurance

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What is Supplemental Medical Insurance?

Looking at the way the cost of health care is escalating for everyone, particularly the self-employed, supplemental health insurance is fast becoming a necessity for anyone wanting to stay not only physically but also financially healthy.  Very often your traditional insurance plan may not cover all your medical needs.  Supplemental health insurance is designed to effectively cover the gaps in your primary health insurance.  It covers the additional expenses not taken care of by your primary insurance plan, like for example, lost income due to illness, and living expenses.

Supplemental Health Insurance thus gives you additional benefits, and is especially helpful when you need to tackle huge medical bills or maybe loss of salary because of illness or injury.  Therefore, supplemental health insurance can be considered as a secondary plan that gives you extra benefits and covers additional risk.

Supplemental health insurance plans like AFLAC offer a monetary benefit to those who are out of work because of either illness or injury.  But there are a number of other insurance companies in the market as well, who have different supplementary health insurance plans providing cash benefits for many other valid reasons.

The main benefits offered by supplemental health insurance policies are lower cost because of smaller benefit amounts, cash benefits, provision for offsetting any lost income unlike traditional health insurance policies, and often even coverage for any pre-existing conditions.

Supplemental health insurance that is the most common is the one designed for people covered by Medicare.  This doesn’t cover at-home care, long term health care, nursing homes, and prescription drugs.  Therefore, many seniors prefer to have a Medicare insurance supplement as also long term care insurance for ensuring their financial security.  But sadly, these two supplemental policies can cost up to 4,000 USD a year.

Other common supplemental plans are the hospital indemnity plans that offer specific cash benefits for the covered services including any hospital stays in case of emergencies as well as outpatient services, and basic supplemental medical insurance plans that offer cash payment for covered preventive medical care.  Then, there are the supplemental cancer insurance plans providing direct cash to the policy holders for different cancer treatments and other related expenses.  For covering critical illnesses, there are policies that provide lump sum monetary benefits to make it easier to pay for out of pocket expenses incurred due to heart attacks, heart surgeries, strokes, cancer, and several other illnesses.

Another situation that can be financially disastrous for anyone or any family is becoming unexpectedly disabled.  Disability income protection provides a safety net against unforeseen lost income by offering a monthly benefit to assist in paying the bills.  For those in need of long term care, there is long term care insurance for handling the high cost of assisted living facilities, adult day care, medical home care, etc.

People who should definitely opt for supplemental health insurance include the self-employed, those financially unable to cope with inflated medical bills or unexpected time away from work, families with children, and those who are on Medicare.

How divorce affects your health insurance?

One of the problems couples contemplating getting divorced have to confront is how to continue availing of health insurance benefits after the divorce.  Sometimes the husband and wife may both have employment, but only one of the spouses has a job that offers health insurance benefits.  Then, in other cases, one of the spouses is unemployed but is covered by the family health insurance benefits provided by the other partner’s employer.  When such couples go in for a divorce, they cannot be considered to be family members and therefore the spouse who was dependent on the other partner for getting health insurance benefits can no longer be covered by their partner’s health insurance policy.

Since health insurance is essential for everyone to ensure they can cope with the rising costs of health care, such couples need to find a way out so that both of them and their children can continue to enjoy health insurance coverage.

Health insurance is not always cheap. In cases where the cost of getting a separate health insurance policy for the dependent spouse after a divorce would be too high, they have a way to continue the benefits without any additional cost.  And that is to put off the divorce for some time and opt for a separation agreement instead.  Thus the couple can stay married and continue to be covered by the same insurance plan despite being separated.  The separation could help them prolong the period of enjoying health insurance benefits cost- effectively for some more time.  This way the partner without independent health insurance gets some time to work out a more permanent solution.

But separation could pose some problems, like for instance, the working partner’s tax filing status could be affected.  Then, implementing a separation agreement is difficult in some states.  In other states, one spouse may be permitted to get insurance benefits provided by the separation agreement for around a year or two and later legally seek other types of financial relief applicable after divorce.  However, you’ll have to take the advice of a licensed divorce attorney on these issues.  An experienced attorney would also be able to suggest other options to couples who absolutely want to get divorced without any delay.

For example, attorneys often suggest COBRA coverage to eligible couples.  This is a federal law that gives eligible individuals covered under any health insurance policy the right to continue coverage for a specific time period, but at their own cost.  For example, let’s say you have got a divorce and formerly you were covered under the family health insurance coverage provided by your ex-spouse’s employer, then the employer would be bound to provide you with COBRA coverage even after the divorce for a fixed time period.

The COBRA coverage would be under the same policy as before.  However, your coverage would now not be family, but individual, and instead of the employer, you would be required to pay the premium for that individual policy.  Very often, the unemployed spouse or the one earning a lesser income opts for COBRA coverage and then gets their spouse to pay for the coverage for a fixed period after the divorce.  This gives the spouse without independent coverage time to either get a job with coverage or earn enough money to pay for their own policy.

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Affordable Dental Insurance Plans

Dental treatments are very costly and understandably dental insurance is extremely beneficial for coping with the spiraling costs of dentists’ services.  But with a whole range of dental insurance plans available today, it is not easy to make the right choice and pick the one that will best serve your individual needs or that of your family.

Before concluding from which plan you could get the best deal and the most benefits, you have to compare the different dental insurance plans and make a thorough analysis of what they offer.  To make this easier for you, we’ve listed a few important factors to consider before making your final selection.

Compare Dental Insurance Plans Online:

A reliable broker or agent could recommend a number of options that could be a good match for you.  But an online comparison of different available dental insurance options would certainly be a better way of doing in-depth research regarding, benefits, flexibility and price.  Insurance plans are extremely varied to begin with, and the internet is a valuable tool for comparing them.

Compare Dental Insurance Prices:

Price is an important factor. An online comparison would let you carefully view all the different plan options and all the various price ranges, making it easier to pick one that is just right for your budget.

A vital aspect of cost comparison is comparing the yearly maximum coverage under a particular plan on a regular basis.  The value of benefits available in one complete year is a crucial factor while choosing a dental insurance plan.  Yearly maximums are renewed automatically every year.  Also, remember that anything that has not been used within a particular year will not be carried over into the next.  Many of the dental insurance companies limit the average yearly maximum to $1000.

Compare Benefits of Dental Insurance Plans:

You’ll have to ask yourself a few questions while doing this. For instance – Will I be free to choose my own dentist under this plan?  Will insurance with co-pay be needed?  Are there restrictions of fixed dates and times for visiting the dentist for those covered by this insurance plan?

Regarding independent dental insurance plans, most only cover dental services administered from a dentist contracted by them or who is a part of their network.  So check if dental work will have to be done from only a participating dentist.  There are other plans that may allow you to stay with your current dentist, but it is essential to clarify this beforehand.

Check the Major Coverage of Dental Insurance:

Most dental insurance companies split their different dental procedures into three main categories – major, preventative, and restorative work. So inquire about their policies regarding these.  Different dental companies categorize the various dental procedures in their own way.  For instance, one may consider that root canals and crowns are a major procedure, whereas another may not.

Understand your Personal Needs:

Remember that the plan that suits someone else might not be the best one for you.  Some components of a particular dental insurance plan may be absolutely essential for others, but not for you.  You might not need many of the offerings listed under a particular plan.  So give serious thought to what your specific needs are and what is your objective for obtaining dental insurance first before selecting a plan.

The right dental insurance plan could help you look after your teeth with minimum costs.

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Health Insurance Plans for College Students

It is every students dream to finish his academic course without any hindrance or obstacles.  This is precisely the reason as to why you as a student must plan for a health insurance.  It is necessary that you sit with your parents and talk about getting enrolled in an appropriate student health insurance plan.  By doing this, you will be able to concentrate on your academic course without any distractions and do not have to worry about the medical expenses.

It is very disturbing to note that around 1.7 million college going students are without a health insurance cover putting them in a high risk.  This report was recently released by the accounting department of the government.  The young college going group are considered the most healthy and they need to spend more time in the classrooms rather than in the medical rooms.

It also puts a great strain on the government spending and expenditure if the students remain uninsured.  The most alarming aspect is that as much as two thirds of the young students remain uninsured because the premiums and medical treatment are very expensive.  Looking at all these, many colleges have come forward with positive measures in providing health cover to students.  Many colleges before enrolling and admitting students for the new academic year have made health insurance for college students mandatory, and the students need to provide a proof of their student health insurance at the time of admission.

As discussed earlier, on the one hand the colleges are asking the students to provide a proof of their health cover; on the other hand many colleges are coming forward with their own health plans for students.  It is heartening to know that a good sixty percent of the colleges are offering student health insurance plans.  These insurance plans are offered by both the private and public colleges which offer four year academic courses.

There is one more good news for all of you.  The requirements for you to become eligible for the college health insurance plans are less rigid than the individual plans.  Once you are admitted as a student for a full time academic course, you become eligible for all the benefits under the student health insurance plan offered by your college.  In certain cases, your health insurance coverage extends even after you have completed your graduation course. Continue Reading »
Student Health Insurance Quotes

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Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield Health Insurance

Health care expenses constitute a large part of the monthly budget, particularly for elderly people.  That is why Medicare is a big boon for senior citizens and also the disabled.  It makes medical care more affordable.  But recent changes in Medicare insurance have reduced the benefits it offers.  For example, prescription drugs and some medical services covered under Medicare before are now either no longer covered or else not covered to the same extent as before.  Another problem faced by many elderly patients is that their medical expenses often exceed what Medicare covers and hence just Medicare insurance is insufficient for them.

Medigap Health Insurance – Blue Cross Blue Shield

That is when “Medigap” policies play a critical role.  These are health insurance plans offered by private companies to fill the gap left by the standard Medicare program.  Companies like Blue Cross and Blue Shield have developed a “Medigap” health insurance policy offering coverage for what Medicare no longer covers.  This is a type of supplementary insurance to the main Medicare insurance and involves payment of a premium.  Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance can prove to be very valuable to elderly people who are on a fixed income and have been badly affected by the changes introduced into Medicare in the last few years.  Those who fail to go in for a Medigap policy have no option but to forego necessary medications and even medical services.

The market is full of companies offering health insurance plans including Medigap policies of different types.  But which one should you choose? The benefits offered appear to be the same, but premiums vary.  So which company can you depend upon to provide the most benefits?

Our advice would be to stick to the same guidelines that you would apply when choosing a company for any other type of insurance plan.  What is most important is to make sure the policy meets your needs economically as well as in relation to coverage.  Also, the company should be familiar with Medicare plans.

Once such company that meets all these criteria is Blue Cross Blue Shield.  The company has assisted in the administration of the Medicare program for many years.  It fully understands how Medicare works and therefore they are a good company with which you could begin your research.

Unfortunately, many people wake up to the benefits of having supplementary health care insurance when something unexpected happens and they are suddenly faced with huge medical bills.  If you think you need help in deciding on the right company or the right type of plan, talk to any experienced insurance agent.  But ultimately, which company you pick will have to be one best suited to your individual needs, though Blue Cross Blue Shield’s policy could serve as an excellent guideline, especially considering they are well versed in how the Medicare health insurance program is administered.

Maybe you’re a senior citizen on a tight budget, and you’re wondering if you should take the chance of doing without Medigap insurance?  Well, there is no doubt that you absolutely should have supplementary insurance.  The crucial issue is picking the right company.

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Online health insurance quotes can save you money

The market is full of health insurance plans that come with varied benefits and prices, and finding the right one from this maze of options is certainly not child’s play.  You have to study and compare the different plans before deciding which one suits you the best and basically there are two ways of doing this.  If you don’t mind spending a lot of time on this task, you could actually make trips to the offices of different health insurance providers, devote time to talking to their representatives, etc.  and spend days or maybe weeks on this whole exercise.  Or you could take the online route and save time, money and energy.

Many people are surprised when they are informed that they can shop online for health insurance just like shopping for car insurance or any other insurance.  Considering that health insurance comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, it is very easy to understand why more and more people prefer using the internet to go comparison shopping for health insurance.

For one, it’s so much easier than actually driving from one company’s office to the other.  Health insurance websites save you the legwork, and offer you health insurance quotes free of cost.

Secondly, it takes barely a few seconds to receive online quotes.  Compare this with the time it would take you to have physical discussions with say just six to seven companies and then receive quotes from them.  This would involve days or even a few weeks of your time.

Saving time is one of the biggest benefits of going in for online health insurance quotes.  All you have to do is type your postal zip code inside the specified window, and in less than a minute you’ll have a range of quotes from different insurance companies in your state.  And you can do this at any time and on any day according to your convenience.

Yet another advantage offered by online health insurance quotes is that you can do an online search from the privacy of your own home.  Besides, you can take your time carefully studying and filling out online forms not just for yourself but also for other family members sitting comfortably at home.  You will also be able to decide on the right plan in a calm frame of mind without any pressure from sales persons.

The most important thing for making a good decision is knowing and understanding the available options.  An online search throws up a large number of quotes side by side so you can easily compare their benefits, coverage and costs without any confusion or frustration.

Those who have actually gone to the trouble of spending time and money visiting various health insurance providers at their offices in different locations will surely agree that getting online health insurance quotes is quick and the cheaper and smarter way of going about finding the right health insurance plan.  Comparing health insurance quotes online is just a matter of moving with ease from one browser tab to another.

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Health Insurance for Pregnancy and Pregnant Women

You would definitely feel disturbed to note that a whopping forty one million Americans are without any kind of health insurance.  This puts their lives in great risk.  Even among those who are insured, the health insurance amount is not sufficient to cover major illnesses.  It is also quite alarming to know that a good thirteen percent of the women who get pregnant are without insurance.  This is simply because they are not able to afford it.  This definitely puts the lives of both the mother and new born baby at great risk.

As you know, it is every woman’s dream to become a mother and their joy knows no bounds when they come to know that they are pregnant.  But, the high medical costs of pregnancy can dampen their spirits and cause a lot of worry.  For a normal pregnancy, the cost of delivery ranges anywhere between six thousand dollars to eight thousand dollars.  This cost can steeply increase if it is a complicated pregnancy case.

One of the major drawbacks faced by pregnant women is that many health insurance companies treat pregnancy as a pre-existing condition.  If a pregnant woman plans to opt for a health insurance, she is denied one. But, you do not have to despair.  Medicaid, a program for the low income groups, which is funded by the federal readily, provides health insurance to women who are already pregnant.  Those who fail to get covered even under the Medicaid will find it very difficult to pay for all the delivery charges and prenatal visits.

Definitely, Medicaid is one of the best programs funded by the government.  You may also enquire for other state sponsored health programs by visiting your state health department.  There is one more wonderful federal sponsored program by the name WIC which provides health insurance to women in the low income group and to all the children and infants who are below the age of five.  WIC also provides information on healthy living and eating to pregnant mothers, supplies nutritious foods, provides proper medicines and supplements and advises on all aspects of pregnancy.

There are also plenty of other discount programs related to health care.  One of the leading discount programs which are available in all the states except Alaska is the AmeriPlan.  This wonderful plan helps you to save up to a good fifty percent on your health expenses.  The various benefits covered under the plan are medical tests, x-rays, lab work, hospital expenses and physician charges.  This plan is not an insurance scheme and therefore, there is no worry about any pre-medical or pre-existing condition.  One of the major advantages of this plan are there are no annual limits, no forms for claims, no long period of waiting and no deductibles. This definitely is a very good plan simply because it makes life so comfortable.  You have options and you need to choose the best one.

Tips for getting Infertility Health Insurance

You would be surprised to know that in the U.S.A, one out of every eight women find it very difficult to conceive.  All these women are in the childbearing age and need to go in for fertility treatment in order to conceive.  The medical costs of treating infertility are quite high and therefore young couples need to plan their finances properly.  This definitely is quite a long procedure and requires a lot of patience on the part of married couples.  Usually, the treatment for infertility is not covered under health insurance, but there has been a lot of talk about bringing infertility treatment under health insurance.

You basically need to understand how the treatment works.  Ideally, the most basic treatment for infertility is through artificial insemination or through hormone therapy which is carried out to stimulate ovulation.  These basic procedures may not work for many.  In such cases the doctors resort to vitro fertilization. In this procedure, the eggs are made to fertilize under specific medical conditions and this procedure is carried outside the womb.  Then the fertilized eggs are planted in the lining of the uterus.

You need to plan a lot as these treatments are very expensive.  A single cycle of vitro fertilization may cost a whopping twelve thousand dollars and all the medications related to it may cost an additional four thousand dollars.  This is precisely the reason as to why there is a lot of talk about whether the health insurance should cover these costs for infertility treatment.  One of the main reasons as to why the health insurance companies shy away from covering the costs for infertility treatment is that those women who undergo this procedure give birth to multiple babies or in simple words, deliver more than one baby.

The main problem is that birth of many babies at a time results in premature babies and the costs of taking care of premature babies is exorbitant.  You would be pleasantly surprised to know that a good fourteen states in the United States of America have made it mandatory for the health insurance companies to bear the costs for the diagnostic tests related to infertility.  The state of Texas has made it mandatory for all the health insurance companies to bear the costs for vitro fertilization.  In the states of New York and California, the health insurance companies do not have to pay for vitro fertilization.

Now you need to plan as to how you can get the best coverage for vitro fertilization.  You need to study all the state laws regarding infertility treatment.  You would be delighted to know that the vitro fertilization costs are tax deductible and you must take full advantage of this provision.  You may also make use of a supplemental insurance to neutralize your vitro fertilization costs.  You may also talk to your employer and ask him to cover the vitro fertilization costs in the health plan.