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For years, Americans expected their health insurance to be provided by their employers. Health coverage came standard with most jobs, and many people never worried about paying their doctor and hospital bills.
Those days are gone. Today, the rising cost of healthcare means that most companies can't afford to offer coverage. And now more and more people are looking at individual health insurance.
Many people think that individual health coverage is more expensive that group health coverage. And many people think it's hard to find individual coverage that offers comprehensive health protection.
The reality is that individual health insurance offers several advantages over group health insurance. Sure, it'd be nice if your boss paid ever last dime of your health premium but that's getting rarer and rarer. Employers keep shifting more costs onto their employee's shoulders. For many American workers, every few months means a bigger chunk of their paycheck going to pay for their employer-sponsored insurance policy. And many workers are finding that these insurance policies leave plenty to be desired.
There are several advantages to owning your own health policy.
- With group coverage, everyone gets stuffed into the same policy. You end up paying for benefits you'll never use and your own unique healthcare needs often get overlooked. In an individual policy, you get health coverage that's tailored for you.
- Leave a job, and you leave behind your employer-sponsored coverage. But with an individual policy, you can go wherever your career path takes you and your health insurance comes with you.
- In a group policy, the cost of healthcare is spread out among everyone. That means you end up paying for everyone else's health choices. With individual coverage, you only pay for your health.
The approach of saving on healthcare premiums is to have a deductible that you can afford and take away the copays. Copays cost a lot each month even if you don't use them and when you do you also pay the copay. Example: If it costs an extra $100 a month for the copay for doctors X 12 = $1200 a year. When you go to an in network doctor the visit might cost you $50 and if you are healthy you wouldn't go more than 4 times a year besides your yearly. $50 x 4 = $200. Wouldn't you rather pay $200 a year when needed than $1200 and not use it? Also you can use a supplement which are very inexpensive that pays you when things happen such as doctor visits, wellness, accidents and catistropic illness. These along with a higher deductible will lower your costs $300-$500 a month.
Want to learn more? Get free quotes and compare plans online. In less than a minute, you can see for yourself which plans make the most sense for you. |