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In fact, if you have any permanent health problems,
such as diabetes, or have had cancer at one time in
your family history, your monthly cost could easily
be more than the house and car payment combined.
Shopping
for affordable health insurance can certainly be an
eye-opener. If you have always had a health insurance
benefit where you work - especially a state or federal
employee - and now have to buy your own, you may not
be able to afford the level of health insurance coverage
you have become used to.
Affordable
health insurance, however, is definitely available
-if you know how and where to look.
When
you are looking for affordable health insurance, you
want the lowest cost per year that will fit your budget,
of course. But, even more importantly, you want a
company that has a good record for paying without
fighting with you on every detail. Just as there is
a car for just about any budget, there is also affordable
health insurance. You may not be able to afford a
"Cadillac" policy - but then you probably
don't need all the frills anyway.
Shopping
for health insurance on the internet is the easiest
and best way to find affordable health insurance.
Here are five reasons why.
Sometimes
the most important aspects of a subject are not immediately
obvious. Keep reading to get the complete picture.
1.
You don't need a local agent to help you submit the
claims for health insurance. The medical provider
does it for you. You save money because the health
insurance company saves money by not paying the agent
commission. This could amount to an 8% to 12% savings
to you.
2.
All the top health insurance companies are at your
fingertips on the internet. Most local agents can
only quote you from the few companies that they represent.
They may not offer you what is best for you financially
or health-wise but only what they happen to have available.
3.
Health insurance companies have to be extremely competitive
because it is so quick and easy to compare them with
their competitors on the internet today. In the past
you would have had to visit physically eight to ten
agents to do a similar comparison. Most folks just
didn't have the time or desire for that.
4.
You can change your coverage, deductibles, and payment
options with just a few clicks rather than going through
the paperwork delay with a local agent (and then finding
out he/she made a mistake - more delay).
5.
Charging to a credit card means you aren't going to
forget a payment and be without insurance. Also, it
gives you another 30 days before you actually have
to pay. Also, many companies today give an additional
discount for "auto-pay".
The
key, however, to finding affordable health insurance
is realizing that the purpose of any health insurance
is to protect you from a major financial loss - not
to protect you from spending small money on clinic
visits and sliver removal. These small expenses may
be cumbersome but they generally will not hurt you.
It's the $100,000 heart operation that will break
you. That's the financial disaster health insurance
was originally designed to prevent.
Also,
keep this in mind. Health insurance, as with any insurance,
is a gamble. You are gambling that you will draw out
more than you pay in. Your health insurance company
is gambling they will pay out less. The odds are in
their favor for two reasons. They have all the facts
for millions of families to average out, so they know
the risk in advance. Also, they get to set the rules
and the prices. The higher you set your deductible,
the more risk you take. This is not a bad thing at
all. You will most likely be the winner in the long
run.
Yes,
finding affordable health insurance is much easier
than most people think.
By
adding more of the risk with higher deductibles, spending
a little time on the internet comparing eight to ten
different companies, and deleting coverage that you
will not likely need (such as maternity for many people)
will make it likely for you to find your own affordable
health insurance. by: Daniel Lesser
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