As with most things today purchasing health insurance can be a minefield with an enormous number of providers offering a wide variety of plans and all competing aggressively for your business. The secret of course is to find the ideal plan to meet your own needs and the needs of your family and to do so at the best possible price.
If you are purchasing health insurance for the first time, possibly needing to arrange cover yourself after years of enjoying cover under an employer's group scheme, then there are 4 simple steps which you absolutely must take if you are to ensure that you buy the best affordable health insurance plan.
1. Start by deciding precisely how much you are prepared to pay for health insurance and then base your search for cover on this sum of money.
If you and your family are all reasonably young and in good health then you may well find that it is not all that difficult to locate excellent comprehensive cover within your reach. However, if you are unable to locate a policy at the price you want to pay, then do not be enticed to pay any more than you can really afford!
Select a policy which matches your budget!
There are a lot of different plans being offered today with a lot of different payment structures. It might suit your needs for instance to find a policy which has a high deductible and low monthly premiums which also qualifies for use in a health savings plan. This would then have the advantage of permitting you to accumulate cash within your policy to meet the cost of future claims and at the same time qualify for tax relief from the IRS.
2. Look around and consider plans being sold by several insurance companies. Make sure that any insurer being considered provides cover within your area and will also give you cover if you are traveling out of state either on business or for fun.
3. As soon as you have narrowed your search down to perhaps two or three possible health insurers, research each company with care to see that they are both financially secure and reputable. More often than not you will be dealing with major insurers who have been in business for many years and are well-known 'household' names. However, if the insurer you are considering is not too well known then you must check them out using an online service such as that provided by A. M. Best Company. If you are in any doubt whatsoever about a company then you would probably be best advised to drop it from your list of possible insurers.
4. An excellent sign of how good an insurance company is the number of complaints which it receives from displeased policy holders. Obviously any health insurer with a high number of complaints and a lot of displeased plan holders should be avoided and, thankfully, you can get this information online at the National Association of Insurance Commissioner's website.
Health insurance is very much a consumer product nowadays and plans come in all shapes and sizes to suit a host of needs. Take the time necessary therefore to acquaint yourself with exactly what is available within your state and discover the policy that best meets your individual requirements. With a little bit of time and careful searching you will invariably find an excellent and affordable health insurance plan. |
