You’ve done all you could to prepare your child for college. You’ve set rules, stated guidelines and communicated your expectations. You’ve done your best; you’ve covered all the bases. Or have you?
Identifying Misconceptions
When it comes to sending their child off to college, many parents make the all too common mistake of assuming that their child will be covered under their health policy—and that their coverages and benefits will be the same while they’re away at college.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Many insurers still cover dependents until age 23, but many are terminating dependent coverage sooner—some as young as age 18. Furthermore, college students that attend school out-of-state may not receive all their benefits or may be charged additional fees for seeing physicians out of the insurer’s network.
So what’s a parent to do?
The Good News
Fortunately, if a student isn’t fully covered on a parent’s health insurance plan, there are affordable alternatives.
Generally speaking, college students and their parents tend to seek health plans from one of three places: the student’s college, a private health insurer or other student organizations.
The majority of colleges and universities now offer student health insurance for their attendants, which often consist of two or three policy options. While traditionally less expensive, the costs and coverages of university-sponsored health plans tend to be more fixed, which may not meet needs of students with pre-existing conditions.
Surprisingly, private health insurance for students is fairly inexpensive. Private health insurance is an especially attractive option for parents and students because it typically covers a wider range of benefits. Your chances of snagging discounts are also greater if you buy a student policy from a private insurer.
Other student health plans are available through student-help organizations like the American College Student Association (ACSA). Organizations like ACSA specialize in short-term health insurance and study abroad coverage, which is especially appealing to students wishing to travel.
Tips to Remember
Making sure the student in your life has adequate health insurance is important. As you ask questions and shop for health plans, consider the following tips:
Know the student’s needs. Does the student have allergies? A need for travel vaccines? Knowing what your student needs ahead of time will help narrow your policy options.
Know how long the student needs the coverage. Many insurers allow you to purchase policies that last anywhere from three months to a year—determine how long the student will need the policy to avoid paying for extra coverage.
Compare multiple policies. More health insurance options mean more options to save. Don’t forget to compare policy benefits, deductibles and limitations while searching for cheap health insurance.
Don’t skimp on major medical. Before buying a student health policy, make sure it covers major medical expenses. The cheapest policy in the world won’t save you money if it doesn’t cover major medical expenses!
Lessons Learned
Whether you’re a student yourself, or a parent seeking health insurance for a student, it’s important to understand that health insurance is an important part of staying healthy in college. Use the tips above to help you find the best—and the cheapest—student health insurance policy!
By: Megan Mahan
Posts Tagged ‘Dependents’
Arizona Group Health Insurance
March 18th, 2010
If you are starting out a business in Arizona and intend to employ people, it makes sense to thoroughly study the laws governing Arizona group insurance. You need to understand state and federal laws as well as individual regulations of health insurance companies in order to provide the best care you can for your employees while also protecting yourself as the employer.
There are some basic elements of Arizona group insurance. If you have a small business in Arizona (if you employ only two to fifty employees during one calendar year), you are not required to provide group health insurance to your employees. But sometimes you need to do this as an added incentive to your hard workers and potential recruits. If you decide to offer group insurance, you should keep two considerations in mind: health insurance eligibility requirements and premium payments.
You should understand health insurance eligibility requirements. As the employer, you are in charge of establishing the eligibility of your employees for health insurance. Most insurance companies offer you guaranteed issue deals that let you and your employees skip medical underwriting.
However, you still have the power to decide who among your employees are eligible for group insurance and who are not. Do you only give group health insurance to full-time employees, or do you include part-time workers? What constitutes full-time and part-time work? How long should an employee have been working for you before he or she qualifies for group insurance? Do you also cover his or her dependents; and if so, to what degree?
You should also consider the premium payments. In Arizona, you will typically be required to shoulder at least 50% of your employees’ portions of the premiums – this is the average percentage that insurance companies impose as an employer’s minimum contribution towards his or her employees’ health insurance payments. You may opt to cover all of your employees’ premiums; if you do so, you will not be required to contribute anything to their dependents’ plans.
By: Eric Morris
Small Business Health Insurance Plans
February 16th, 2010
Group health insurance plans are especially beneficial for small businesses. Any business or organization employing between 2 and 50 people can opt for a group health insurance plan. These plans have become all the more relevant, since healthcare costs have been rising in the US. This poses a major challenge for prospective small businesses, as they have to find affordable health insurance benefits for their employees. Good health insurance benefits can help you retain valuable talent while at the same time being a draw for new aspirants.
Features of Group Insurance Plans:
Group health insurance plans work by spreading the financial risk between the members of the scheme. Individual members of the group pay less for the same type and amount of coverage. The rates are calculated as a whole for the group. The factors taken into account are age, health status, and occupational hazards, amongst others. These may vary in different states and amongst different companies. While there is no change to the basic policy format for the whole group, you may be able to get better coverage by negotiating add-ons and riders to meet specific requirements.
Small business heath insurance policies are offered in many formats, e.g. HMO, PPO, POS, and fee-for-service. Managed care plans are more affordable than group indemnity policies and are therefore more popular.
Designing the Plan:
Do have a clear objective in place when purchasing a health insurance plan or your small business? The plan should meet the needs of the company and its employees. Carry out extensive research before making the purchase.
The insurance company will need information on the type of coverage you are seeking, age and health profile of the group members. While not required as per the law, you may extend the coverage to the spouse or dependents and pay a percentage of the cost. The accuracy of the information you provide will determine the accuracy of the quote. You will then be able to choose from various policy and payment options. The employer pays some percentage of an employee’s individual premium, approximately between 25% and 50%.
Premiums have grown manifold in recent years due to an aging population, rising cost of medicines and adverse publicity and backlash against managed healthcare. However, the situation is not entirely without hope as a number of companies still offer a variety of choice of plans. The local chamber of commerce can be of considerable help in finding about prospective alliances in your area.
Small business health insurance plans diversify the financial risk amongst members of the group and lower costs. You can also get better coverage for your employees. They have become an essential part of your business plan due to rising healthcare costs. Do buy a plan that meets the needs of your company and the employees.
By: Alexander Gordon
