Checkup on Health Insurance Choices

Why Do You Need Health Insurance?
Where Do People Get Health Insurance Coverage?
Group Insurance
Individual Insurance
What Are Your Choices?
Which Type Is Right for You?

"I get health insurance through my job. I have the coverage I need...I think"

Many employers offer a choice of plans. The information provided will help you figure out the plan that's best for you.

"I know I need health insurance, but I'm not sure how to get the best protection at the lowest cost."

You're not alone. Many people have questions about how to select a health insurance plan. The information provided will help you find some answers.

"I can't afford health insurance right now. I have too many bills to pay and other things I need to buy."

Health insurance is one of your most important needs. Without it, one serious illness or accident could wipe you out financially. The information provided will help you decide which is the best plan you can afford.

Why Do You Need Health Insurance?

Where Do People Get Health Insurance Coverage?

Group Insurance

Some employers offer only one health insurance plan. Some offer a choice of plans: a fee-for-service plan, a health maintenance organization (HMO), or a preferred provider organization (PPO), for example. Employers with 25 or more workers are required by Federal law to offer employees the chance to enroll in an HMO. Explanations of fee-for-service plans, HMOs, and PPOs are provided in the section called Types of Insurance.

What happens if you or your family member leaves the job? You will lose your employer- supported group coverage. It may be possible to keep the same policy, but you will have to pay for it yourself. This will certainly cost you more than group coverage for the same, or less, protection.

A Federal law makes it possible for most people to continue their group health coverage for a period of time. Called COBRA (for the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985), the law requires that if you work for a business of 20 or more employees and leave your job or are laid off, you can continue to get health coverage for at least 18 months. You will be charged a higher premium than when you were working.

You also will be able to get insurance under COBRA if your spouse was covered but now you are widowed or divorced. If you were covered under your parents' group plan while you were in school, you also can continue in the plan for up to 18 months under COBRA until you find a job that offers you your own health insurance.

Not all employers offer health insurance. You might find this to be the case with your job, especially if you work for a small business or work part-time. If your employer does not offer health insurance, you might be able to get group insurance through membership in a labor union, professional association, club, or other organization. Many organizations offer health insurance plans to members.

Individual Insurance

If you get a noncancellable policy (also called a guaranteed renewable policy), then you will receive individual insurance under that policy as long as you keep paying the monthly premium. The insurance company can raise the cost, but cannot cancel your coverage. Many companies now offer a conditionally renewable policy. This means that the insurance company can cancel all policies like yours, not just yours. This protects you from being singled out. But it doesn't protect you from losing coverage.

Before you buy any health insurance policy, make sure you know what it will pay for...and what it won't. To find out about individual health insurance plans, you can call insurance companies, HMOs, and PPOs in your community, or speak to the agent who handles your car or house insurance.

Tips when shopping for individual insurance:

• Shop carefully. Policies differ widely in coverage and cost. Contact different insurance companies, or ask your agent to show you policies from several insurers so you can compare them.
• Make sure the policy protects you from large medical costs.
• Read and understand the policy. Make sure it provides the kind of coverage that's right for you. You don't want unpleasant surprises when you're sick or in the hospital.
• Check to see that the policy states: the date that the policy will begin paying (some have a waiting period before coverage begins), and what is covered or excluded from coverage.
• Make sure there is a "free look" clause. Most companies give you at least 10 days to look over your policy after you receive it. If you decide it is not for you, you can return it and have your premium refunded.
• Beware of single disease insurance policies. There are some polices that offer protection for only one disease, such as cancer. If you already have health insurance, your regular plan probably already provides all the coverage you need. Check to see what protection you have before buying any more insurance.

What Are Your Choices?

For example, if your family includes just two adults, it may be less expensive for each of you to have individual coverage than for just one of you to have a family plan. If you have children, or if you might have children soon, you need a family plan. Because your situation may change, review your health insurance regularly to make sure you have the protection you need.

Choosing a health insurance plan is like making any other major purchase: You choose the plan that meets both your needs and your budget. For most people, this means deciding which plan is worth the cost. For example, plans that allow you the most choices in doctors and hospitals also tend to cost more than plans that limit choices. Plans that help to manage the care you receive usually cost you less, but you give up some freedom of choice.

Cost isn't the only thing to consider when buying health insurance. You also need to consider what benefits are covered. You need to compare plans carefully for both cost and coverage.

Although there are many names for health insurance plans, the information here groups them as three main types:

• Fee-For-Service (or Traditional Health Insurance)
• Health Maintenance Organizations (or HMOs)
• Preferred Provider Organizations (or PPOs)

Which Type Is Right for You?

For each group, choose the statement 1 or 2 that best describes how you feel:

1. Having complete freedom to choose doctors and hospitals is the most important thing to me in a health plan, even if it costs more.
2. Holding down my costs is the most important thing to me, even if it means limiting some of my choices.

1. I travel a lot or have children that live away from me and we may need to see doctors in other parts of the country.
2. I do not travel a lot and almost all care for my family will be needed in our local area.

1. I don't mind a health insurance plan that includes filling out forms or keeping receipts and sending them in for payment.
2. I prefer not to fill out forms or keep receipts. I want most of my care covered without a lot of paperwork.

1. In addition to my premiums, I am willing to pay for the cost of routine and preventive care, such as office visits, checkups, and shots. I also like knowing that I can get an appointment for these services when I want one.
2. I want a health plan that includes routine and preventive care. I don't mind if I have to wait for these services to be scheduled for an available appointment with my doctor.

1. If I need to see a specialist, I probably will ask my doctor for a recommendation, but I want to decide whom to go to and when. I don't want to have to see my primary care doctor each time before I can see a specialist.
2. I don't mind if my primary care doctor must refer me to specialists. If my doctor doesn't think I need special services, that is fine with me.

If your answers are mostly 1: You want to make your own health care choices, even if it costs you more and takes more paperwork. Fee-for-service may be the best plan for you.

If your answers are mostly 2: You are willing to give up some choices to hold down your medical costs. You also want help in managing your care. Consider a health maintenance organization.

If your answers are some 1's and some 2's: You might want to look for a plan such as a preferred provider organization that combines some of the features of fee-for-service and a health maintenance organization.

The differences among fee-for-service plans, HMOs, and PPOs are not as clear-cut as they once were. Fee-for-service plans have adopted some activities used by HMOs and PPOs to control the use of medical services. And HMOs and PPOs are offering more freedom to choose doctors, the way fee-for-service plans do. By studying your health insurance options carefully, you will be able to pick the one that provides you with the coverage you need, no matter what it is called.