The major thing to remember when searching for health insurance quotes is that the bigger companies are not always the best choice to ask for quotes. Although they have multiple carriers, their sites don’t often offer side-by-side comparisons of one plan to another. That’s what you want – a site that gives you the ability to see what others offer at the same time. It’s a novel thought, and yes, there are sites on the Internet that do that.
Don’t base your search for health care insurance on price alone. You might find that a rather radical thought, because trying to save money leads logically to shopping for the least expensive plan. However, you may not want to do that because when you go for the cheapest options, you often end up foregoing benefits you may need later.
Here’s where your local health insurance agent comes into play. Call them; that’s what they’re there for – to provide you with a health care insurance quote that is tailor-made for your specific circumstances, not everyone else’s. The advice is free, and it can save you a ton of money while getting you what you really need in terms of health care coverage.
When talking to the health insurance agent, tell them precisely what you are looking for based on what you need for you and/or your family. Tell them all the circumstances, such as pre-existing conditions, your family size and plans for future children, or conditions you currently have under control through the use of medication.
All the information you give the agent is confidential and will help them to provide you with a plan that works. There are thousands of options out there, and you can’t read about all of them online. That’s what health care insurance agents are for, to make choosing a health care plan a whole lot easier.
The big name online companies might not always be the best option for you either, largely because they don’t always have the same kind of plan flexibility as a smaller company does. Brand name companies, like brand name drugs, don’t always do what you think they will do. Ask smaller companies to provide you quotes while also taking time for a free consultation with the insurance broker. You will be pleasantly surprised.
By: C. Green
Posts Tagged ‘Insurance Agents’
For Reasonable Health Insurance Quotes, Compare Carriers
March 27th, 2010Health Insurance Deductibles – Costing You More Than You Think
March 7th, 2010
When it comes to Health Insurance, some families are confused about their deductibles. Without the right guidance this could cost you a fortune at claim time. If your family doesn’t have anything going on outside of doctor visits you could be over spending on your insurance policy. At that point, the insurance company gets to keep the over spent premiums.
The deductible is the amount you pay in a single year before the insurance company kicks in. Be careful of plans out there that claim they are based on a 365 day period. If you read the next line it says for EACH Injury or Sickness period of treatment. This means if you have 2 completely different ‘periods of treatment’ in one year you will be exposed to two separate deductibles!! If you have what they call ‘Calendar Year Deductible’ once your deductible is satisfied for the year there are no more deductibles. This is outside of ‘out-of-network deductibles’ or ’service deductibles’.
The out-of-network deductible is the insurance company’s way of penalizing you for going out side of a preferred provider network. Usually this deductible can be anywhere from $2,000, or more commonly, twice your original deductible. Of course, this is in addition to your in-network deductible. The problem is that even if you’re admitted into an in-network facility for a scheduled surgery… the surgeon, pathologist, radiologist or anesthesiologist may not be a participating provider in your network… and you could easily be stuck with an additional $5000 or more out-of-pocket. There are only a few insurance carriers out there that do not have out-of-network deductibles. Once it is satisfied for the year, in-network or not, it’s satisfied, period. Check with your Health Insurance Specialist on these carriers.
Unfortunately, too many insurance agents like to steer their clients toward low deductibles like $500 or $1000. These are the absolute worst values! The lower the deductible, more the premium you have to pay each month.
Since agents get paid a percentage of your premium, in turn, the lower your deductible, the bigger their commission! Obviously, the agent has a financial disincentive to save you money. Be suspicious of insurance agents that recommend health insurance deductibles under $1500!
Affordable plans have deductibles of $2500 and up. The higher your deductible, the lower your cost. In fact the money you save will almost always far exceed any potential additional out-of-pocket expenses!
Conclusion: Work with a Health Insurance Expert. They will walk you through affordable options to lower your premiums to keep them affordable. Usually, your premiums savings will offset any potential out of pocket expenses. There is no point of over paying your policy ‘just in case’ something does occur. When that ‘just in case’ occurs you would have saved enough hard earned premium dollars to offset the out of pocket expenses.
By: Butch Zemar
Commonwealth of Virginia Low Cost Health Insurance
February 19th, 2010
Finding low cost health insurance in the Commonwealth of Virginia does not mean you have to be eligible for a group health insurance plan through your employer, nor does it mean you have to qualify for Medicaid or state-sponsored health care services. Virginia residents in search of affordable health care can purchase individual health insurance plans.
Because individual health insurance plans can be expensive – which isn’t exactly the equivalent of “low cost” – you want to make sure you are getting exactly your money’s worth. Take these tips into consideration when shopping for an individual health insurance plan in the Commonwealth of Virginia:
• Make sure the health carriers and insurance agents selling individual health insurance policies are licensed to sell health insurance in Virginia – if you purchase health insurance from a company or agent not licensed to do business in Virginia, you will find it difficult to obtain protection against fraud.
• Don’t lie and don’t risk it. If you know a particular health insurance company won’t insure you because of a pre-existing medical condition, don’t lie about that condition in order to get low cost health insurance. You’ll only be cheating yourself, because you still won’t have coverage for the health issue. Wouldn’t you rather feel safe in knowing you’re covered should complications arise?
• Don’t give up. If one health insurance company denies you medical coverage, move on to the next company. Each individual health insurance company follows different standards and criteria for offering health insurance – whatever the price. Just because you are not eligible for one company’s policy does not mean you will not be eligible for another company’s policy.
Many people cringe when they think about purchasing an individual health insurance policy; however, by shopping around and being honest with several different health carriers and insurance agents in the Commonwealth of Virginia, you will find the low cost health insurance plan that is right for you.
By: Elizabeth Newberry
