| Health Insurance costs have gone through the | | | | doctor and hospital or staying with a network |
| roof in recent years, but finding an | | | | doctor and hospital. |
| affordable health insurance plan may not be | | | | |
| as hard as you think. Here are simple | | | | Choosing an Affordable Health Insurance Plan |
| explanations of the four basic plans and you | | | | |
| can save money on them. | | | | The first thing you have to do is to figure |
| | | | out which health insurance plan is best for |
| Health Insurance Plans | | | | you. |
| | | | |
| There are four basic types of health | | | | If you want the most flexibility, then a POS |
| insurance: | | | | plan is your best bet. If you want the |
| | | | cheapest plan and don't don't mind your |
| 1. Indemnity - This is the most expensive | | | | doctors being chosen for you, then an HMO is |
| plan. It allows you to choose your own doctor | | | | what your looking for. If you want more |
| and hospital. It's the most flexible plan | | | | freedom of choice than an HMO and are willing |
| because it allows you to make your own | | | | to pay a little more for your insurance, then |
| decisions about your health care. You pay | | | | a PPO is a good choice. And if you're a |
| your bill after services are rendered and are | | | | senior and want to supplement your Medicare |
| then reimbursed by your insurance company. | | | | insurance, then a Medicare supplement is what |
| | | | you need. |
| 2. Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) - | | | | |
| This is the cheapest plan. It provides you | | | | After you choose a plan, the best way to find |
| with a network of doctors and hospitals | | | | the best rate is to go to an insurance |
| chosen by your insurance company. You pay a | | | | comparison website where you can compare |
| monthly fee for this plan and all visits and | | | | rates from a number of different companies. |
| prescriptions must be approved by your HMO. | | | | The better sites even have a chat feature |
| | | | where you can talk online with an insurance |
| 3. Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) - | | | | expert and get answers to your questions. |
| This is the most popular plan. It's similar | | | | (See link below.) |
| to an HMO, but you pay for medical care after | | | | |
| it's received instead of paying a monthly | | | | Visit or click on the following link to get |
| fee. You also have the option of seeing | | | | free health insurance plan quotes from |
| out-of-network doctors. Visits within the | | | | top-rated companies in your area and see how |
| network require a small fee, while | | | | much you can save. You can get more health |
| out-of-network visits may require a | | | | insurance tips by checking out their |
| deductible payment and a co-payment. | | | | "Articles" section. |
| | | | |
| 4. Point of Service (POS) Plan - This is more | | | | The author, Brian Stevens, is a former |
| expensive than HMOs and PPOs but much cheaper | | | | insurance agent and financial consultant who |
| than an idemnity plan. It's for people who | | | | has written numerous articles on affordable |
| want to have the option of choosing their own | | | | health insurance plans. |