The Importance of Good Records
Keeping your own records of any medical care that you and your immediate family have received is the only way to be sure that your insurance and bills are free from mistakes. It may seem unimportant now, but later in life when you try to get life insurance or get treatment that is appropriate for you, the importance will be in the spotlight. Everything from your allergies to your payment records with medical facilities can hurt you if they are wrong in your report. You could be given improper treatment or even denied treatment at all. By keeping your own records, you can dispute anything that is false.
Would you believe that you could be denied a job because of something erroneous on your medical records? It is true; if you are reported to have a disability, whether it is true or not, you could be turned down. You would be labeled as a risk, especially if the company offers insurance; they would know that you are going to cost more money to employ. The same goes for applying for health insurance where your medical records show that you would require prescription drugs, doctor visits, and increased chance of emergencies. It is quite the ordeal if you do in fact have a disability, but imaging if you did not have one at all-you would be turned down for insurance, while also being completely ineligible for disability financial help.
An example of a mistake that could be made on your record would be a diagnosis error. Perhaps you request that your doctor check a suspicious lump in your breast. On the first visit he may suspect that it is cancer. Most people will get a second opinion or go for a more thorough conclusive examination. If the second doctor decides that it is only a cyst and has it removed, your personal records would show that you are cancer-free. However, if this visit was documented incorrectly, or not at all, you may have trouble getting insured and not know why. If you had a record of the second visit that found the cyst, this situation would be easily disputed and your record would be accurate.
Human error is simply a part of life, even on medical documents. It is important to always keep your own records so that insurance companies get accurate information about you and your health condition. If you are being turned down for insurance and do not know why, you are best advised to be sure that you are not being misrepresented within your medical records. This problem can be cleared up quickly and easily if you are responsible enough to keep your own personal records.
Easy as 1-2-3: Obtaining Health Insurance
Many people are often concerned about obtaining health insurance. They are confused about their options or about how to obtain the best health insurance for them or their family. There are several ways to obtain health insurance, though, and some of them are not always obvious, but can be quite easy in the end.
Health insurance is commonly obtained through an employer. Nearly all employers these days offer some sort of “group” health insurance plan for employees. The term “group” simply denotes that there is a large group of people on the plan, which decreases the cost of the monthly premium for all members. These plans can cover yourself, your spouse, and your family, depending on the specific policy. Covering more than just yourself obviously increases your monthly premium, but the ability to cover your family inexpensively is a huge benefit. To obtain group health insurance through your employer, you should contact your human resources department or whoever is in charge of benefits in your company. You should be able to buy into the group health insurance plan at any time during your employment.
If you leave an employer who offers group health insurance without first finding other coverage, you can also use the COBRA law with your previous employer’s health insurance coverage. COBRA is a government act that allows you to continue coverage under your previous employer, though at a more expensive rate. If you had coverage for your entire family, COBRA will allow you to continue this full coverage for a certain period of time.
There are several million people in the United States who are unable to participate in any group health insurance plans, however. Health insurance companies do offer individual plans for those who do not have coverage through their employer, are self-employed, or are ineligible for government health insurance assistance, such as Medicare or Medicaid. Individual health insurance plans are more often than not very expensive in relation to group health insurance plans. These plans can also cover family members and spouses for additional costs. Finding individual health plans is not difficult. Almost all health insurance companies offer individual plans; you can now search online for individual health insurance plans. Some Web sites even allow you to compare pricing and details of plans offered in your area – much like shopping for car insurance.
There is also federal health assistance available depending on certain criteria. If you are over the age of 65 or if you have a disability or specific condition (detailed by the government), you are eligible for Medicare. Medicaid is another government health insurance program that is based on income. Overall, it is simply important to be covered, no matter how you go about doing it. Research your options of coverage and speak with a professional to find out more about the health insurance options available to you.
Advantages to Indemnity Health Insurance Plans
Indemnity health insurance plans are more regularly known as traditional health insurance plans. These health insurance plans can be costly but often cover most health problems that may arise, while other insurance plans exclude some illnesses or diseases from their coverage. Some disadvantages to indemnity plans are that they do not usually cover preventative health care like physicals, and traditional health insurance plans often cover only a percentage of your bill. Research the advantages and disadvantages to indemnity health insurance when you are considering health insurance options.
While the disadvantages may seem problematic, there are many advantages to indemnity health insurance plans. You may have a higher monthly premium and you may need to pay upfront costs and submit claims paperwork, but your deductible will be more manageable and your coverage will be wider. Some health insurance plans will not cover certain medical expenses or care, but indemnity plans often do.
Another benefit of indemnity health insurance plans that many people desire is the freedom to choose your own physician. While other health insurance plans offered by the insurance industry limit your choice of physicians and hospitals to a list of preferred providers, indemnity insurance will cover any physician or hospital. This benefit may seem unworthy of mention, but there has been more than one instance where a mother finds that her son or daughter’s pediatrician is not in their preferred provider network and has to search for another pediatrician. This also means that you can see a specialist without having to consult with your primary care physician first.
Overall, indemnity health insurance plans also offer you the best emergency medical coverage in the industry. While preferred provider organizations (PPOs) or point-of-service (POS) plans limit the physician you can see to a list of network physicians and hospitals, the freedom of choosing any physician is nationwide with indemnity health insurance plans. This means that if you are traveling across the country and have an accident or a medical emergency, you can go to the nearest hospital or see the closest physician without worrying about the expense. There have been instances where hospitals or physicians will either refuse to treat patients or treat them only minimally because the hospital or physician is not inside the plan’s preferred provider network – meaning that the patient’s health insurance will only cover a small part of the expense and the patient is liable to pay the rest of the bill. This is a risky financial situation for the physician and/or hospital since patients are often unable to fully pay costly medical bills. With indemnity health insurance plans, this is almost never the case. Consider this and the other benefits of indemnity health insurance when choosing the plan that is right for you.
For the In-between Times: Short-term Health Insurance
When people think of health insurance, they think of traditional health insurance, with office visits, co-payments, and prescription drug coverage. However, such health insurance is not always available. Perhaps you are transitioning from one job to another; or maybe you are employed part-time or with a temporary agency that does not offer full health coverage; or you might be attending or just graduating from school. In these situations, traditional health insurance is sometimes not available. If you are unable to afford traditional health insurance but would like some coverage in the case of an accident or emergency, short-term health insurance is your best bet.
Short-term health insurance fills the gap in health insurance coverage that may come about for a number of different reasons, including those listed above. The idea of short-term health insurance is built into the name – it is a short-term solution offering short-term coverage, with the expectation that at some point, you will begin or resume traditional health insurance coverage. It is designed for those who would like some coverage in case of accident or injury and covers only emergency or serious medical expenses, such as x-rays, ambulance fees, intensive care, and a certain amount of hospital care. Though policies vary, these are often standard in short-term health insurance coverage. However, short-term health insurance does not cover regular physician visits, nor do they cover pre-existing conditions. If you are looking for this sort of coverage, you should consider obtaining a traditional health insurance policy or looking into other options.
Short-term health insurance costs vary greatly; you will have a monthly premium, ranging anywhere from $25 to $100, depending upon the plan’s coverage and deductible, which often begins at $250 and can increase to $5,000. Most policies these days also offer a reasonable pay-out amount (often one or two million dollars). Policies allow you to choose coverage for specific lengths of time, from 30 days to 90 days or six months, but almost no short-term policies extend past one year.
How do you find short-term health insurance? It is not as difficult as it may seem. A simple Internet search will yield a number of companies that offer short-term health insurance coverage. Searching online will also give you the opportunity to compare different companies and different plans. Just be sure to research each of the policies carefully to understand your maximum pay-out as well as deductibles, coverage, and other terms of the agreement.