Health insurance comes to your rescue when you are faced by a medical problem that could cost you a fortune. This knowledge can give you more than enough peace of mind that you and your family are liable to high quality medical service for the small deductible that you pay.
The advantages of having a health insurance are that it removes the financial burden off your shoulders for the medical expenses with the increasing ailments prevailing around. You get to consult your doctor with less waiting time on comparison with a public system. Also you can enjoy a great deal of peace of mind knowing that you and your family’s health are secure in case of an unexpected medical condition. Health insurance is the best way to stay healthy even at an older age when you are prone to illness and poor health. Also it gives you certain luxuries of a private hospital where special attention is given to you that may not be possible if you had to pay from your own pocket.
Health insurance consists basically of four type’s namely traditional indemnity plans or fee-for-service plans, PPO or Preferred Provider Organizations, POS or Point-Of-Service plans, and HMOs or Health Maintenance Organizations
Traditional Health Insurance (fee-for-service plans): In traditional health Insurance, even before the insurance pays the benefits, the insured is obliged to pay a deductible. Then, the insurance pays 80%, and the insured is responsible to pay the rest. Here the insured can go to any doctor or hospital for the medical service. The fees are paid directly to the hospital by the insured and then the 80% of the bill is reimbursed by the insurance company.
Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs): Here, the plan targets on the long term health care of the insured. This is comparatively less expensive than the traditional health insurance. Here each patient is allotted a primary care physician and if additional medical care is required further steps are taken. This limits the costs by limiting the choices.
Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs): A PPO is similar to HMO, but the difference here is that the insured is not limited to the doctors within the network but can choose any physician of his choice. Nevertheless the deductible and co-payments will be less if you opt for the treatments offered by the physicians within the network. If the insured chooses an out-of-the-network service, it would cost the insured much more but can enjoy the freedom of choosing their doctor and not be confined to a few.
Point-of-Service (POS): A POS is a combination of a PPO and an HMO, where the insured chooses to consult a primary physician. This doctor would refer you to a specialist within the network or outside. If the patients choose to see the specialist without the reference from the primary physician, then the insurance company can choose not to pay for the services.
Despite the health insurance policies being not so cheap, I am sure everyone would agree that when it comes to your health and that of your dear ones, there need not be any compromises. After all health is wealth.