Types of Health Insurance you need to know

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Health insurance or health-care insurance is an important form of coverage that pays a portion or all of an individual's anticipated medical costs. As with any other types of coverage, there are risks among many people. Many people have medical conditions or are overweight or obese, or have other lifestyle conditions that may lead to poor health and higher health insurance premiums. In addition, people who smoke, drink, or use drugs may find that their premiums increase, as well. If you have health insurance but have experienced a recent health problem, it may be time to consider another type of policy or another insurance company altogether.

These are the main types of health plans in the United States:

1. The first is called PPOs, or Preferred Provider Organizations. These policies have a wider choice of doctors and hospitals, but they do not offer as much choice when it comes to medical treatments. If you are dissatisfied with your current doctor, or your new doctor does not agree with your policy, you will have to switch to a different one. This can be very costly, since most doctors will raise the deductible for procedures and surgeries that you may need, to make up for the fact that they cannot refuse surgery on your behalf.
2. The second main type of health insurance policy is the indemnity plan. These types require the insurance carrier to reimburse you for the medical costs you have incurred during a covered event. These types of plans cover medical costs that occur "out of the blue" by your own admission or because of another condition you have. Examples of events that this applies to are dental surgery, accidents, or even childbirth. Because these types of events are rarely covered, your premiums will be significantly higher.
3. The final main type of health insurance policy is called HMOs or Health Maintenance Organizations. A health maintenance organization will force all of their members to have a definite benefit plan that they must use. Usually, these plans will have some pre-determined set of services that are covered by the insurance company. If you visit a doctor that is not on the HMO's list, then you will be expected to pay for the service yourself.

There are many other benefits that you get from using health insurance plans. One of them is hospitalization coverage, which will guarantee you a certain sum assured by your insurer. This will cover the cost of any hospital stay that you might need while you are waiting for an appointment or treatment. Another thing that you will receive is medication reimbursement; this will ensure that you always have some of your prescriptions filled at the pharmacy. The monthly premiums that you pay will not go down without this guaranteed benefit plan, so it will be necessary to keep it current at all times.

When comparing different health insurance policies, you should ask about deductibles, maximum benefits, as well as the claims that you will have to pay out of pocket expenses in case you have to go to the hospital. It is also important to check if the policy you are looking into has any co-payments that will be made to you in the event that you need to go to the doctor. Keep in mind that it is important to make sure that you can afford the premiums on your insurance policy, or else you could end up paying a lot more than you should. Remember, you will also have to pay the deductible that is attached to the health insurance policy that you are considering purchasing.