subject: Choosing A Health Coverage Plan: Three Things You Need To Know [print this page] When thinking about which health insurance plan to choose, there are three important factors that you should consider. These factors will determine if you have sufficient coverage for you and your family or if somewhere down the road you will be stuck holding the bill.
Maximum Out-of-Pocket Cost is one of the important factors. This is a feature that can be very beneficial for you. For example, let's say you have a maximum out of pocket cost of $500. Once you spend at least $500 in a year for your medical expenses, your health coverage plan will then pay for any additional out of pocket medical expenses for that year. Many people don't like their out of pocket amount, they feel it is too high. The thing that you should consider is if something were to happen that causes you to incur exorbitant medical costs, then you can at least have peace of mind knowing that you are only responsible for so much of the costs. The next time you are shopping for a health insurance plan, look for the Maximum Out-of-Pocket Cost. It really is one of the best attributes of a health coverage plan.
Lifetime Maximum Benefit is a feature is a catchy one and one that you hope that your insurance policy doesn?t have. If they have a lifetime maximum, basically this means that once you reach that dollar amount in the benefits paid to medical professionals on your behalf your insurance will stop paying. It is a feature that could leave you with many unpaid medical bills and is one that is especially important to consider if you are insuring your whole family on your company?s insurance plan. When you work for a large company you may have the same insurance over a 30 year period which will very easily allow you to exceed your benefit amount so be careful.
The last factor that you should consider when choosing a health insurance plan is what they call Pre-authorization. Pre-authorization is getting authorization to be treated for an injury that is not life threatening before you actually go for the treatment. Many health care providers are now requiring that this be done. Let's say you are finishing up the patio project that you started last summer and some unfortunate thing happens that requires medical attention. If you go for medical treatment without first contacting your health insurance company, they can deny you coverage because you did not get pre-authorization. Needless to say, you'd be stuck with the bill.
It is important to read and fully understand your health insurance policy. These three items are just some of the most important features that you should look at carefully and understand before committing to purchase insurance from any company.
by: Andrew Ferno
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