In this article, you will discover you discover all the basics of health insurance, including terms often used, types, reliable companies and useful tips to help you save on your health insurance quotes and choose the best coverage at lowest cost.
Your health is one of the most important things you can invest in. Health care is expensive; most people can’t afford to pay for medical services when they fall sick. This is why health insurance is very necessary.
Health insurance is a type of insurance that covers payments for health-related costs for an individual, a group of people, or an organization. Health insurance benefits are administered by organizations such as government agencies, private business or nonprofit organizations.
Health Insurance Terms Explained
Some common health insurance terms used include:
- Health Insurance Premium: This is the amount of money paid to insurance companies for health coverage.
- Health Insurance Deductible: This is the amount of money you have to spend on your own before your insurance coverage kicks in
- Health Insurance Coinsurance: This is the amount of money you owe healthcare providers once deductibles have been paid.
- CO-PAY: These are fixed amount you pay towards a service at the time of service. They are usually small.
- OUT-OF-POCKET MAXIMUM: This is the amount of money you pay for deductibles and coinsurance within a given period before the insurance company starts paying for all covered expenses
Types of Health Insurance Plans
There are different types of Marketplace health insurance plans designed to meet different needs. Some types of plans restrict your provider choices or encourage you to get care from the plan’s network of doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, and other medical service providers. Others pay a greater share of costs for providers outside the plan’s network. 
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO Plans)
These plans allow policyholders to select doctors and receive treatment from only the doctors and specialists within the established provider network. This plan is recommended for people without preexisting medical conditions that require specialist treatment rather than an appointed private care physician.
Exclusive Provider Organizations (EPO plans)
This plan is similar to the HMO plan; the only difference is that the doctors in EPO plans don’t need to be appointed. Here, the policyholder is free to use doctors and specialists outside the established provider network, although at higher out-of-pocket costs.
Preferred Provider Organization (PPO plans)
This plan is similar to the EPO plan with the only difference being the out-of-pocket costs that are a result of visiting services outside the established provider network. This plan covers these visits at a high rate compared to visits from on the established provider networks. EPOs don’t cover these visits at all.
Point of Service Plans (POS)
This plan covers visits to only appointed doctors or specialists under the plan. The only exemption occurs after receiving a referral from the appointed doctor. This plan incurs higher out-of-pocket expenses.
High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP)
These plans have low monthly premiums but offer higher deductibles.
Short-Term Medical Plans
These plans are designed to help fill the gaps between insurance coverage. They help you cover between the times your old policy ends to when the new one takes over.
Health Insurance Companies
There are several health insurance companies, top examples include
- Blue Cross Blue Shield
- Humana
- Kaiser Permanente
- UnitedHealthcare
- Aetna
- Molina healthcare
- Health care service corporation
Simple Tips to Save On Health Insurance Quotes
The cost of premium of health insurance coverage varies from one insurer to another. Other criteria, such as locations and medical history, can also affect the cost.
Here are some simple tips to help you compare different health insurance quotes and choose the best coverage for your need while saving at the same time.
- Be sure to know the basics of health insurance
- Choose the right plan that favors your medical need or family
- Make sure you understand your current plan
- Compare different insurance plans
- Don’t stick to just one insurance company
- Always check to see if you qualify for subsidies
- Make the most of it when you max out your deductibles, discounts, and benefits
Following these detailed tips will help you get the lowest insurance quotes and choose the policy that works best for your need. If you know other techniques to save on health insurance, kindly comment below.
