Health Insurance Is Easy To Find When You Know Where To Look
Many people are ready to give up before they even start shopping for health insurance. There are so many plans available, all with different options, that can become quite confusing to the average person. Fortunately there are experts that can help you. Read the advice in this article for help on purchasing health insurance.
Health insurance may not completely cover the cost of birth control or well-woman visits with your physician. An alternative to a regular gynecologist is Planned Parenthood, which offers exams, counseling and birth control on a sliding scale, meaning the amount you are charged is based on your ability to pay. County health clinics may also offer these services.
Find out if your place of employment offers any type of employee wellness program. This can save you health insurance costs. Many employers offer incentives for employees to have their health and lifestyles assessed. Fitness regimens might be available to you that can cut down on corporate insurance costs, as well as your personal premiums.
Understand you and your families health status when shopping for insurance. If you are a single healthy person, you can take the risk and go for a low-cost, super-high, deductible plan, as the odds are that you will not need to use it as often. If there is a history of illness or if you have children, you will want to pay a little more per month for a lower deductible.
Get a copy of your health care plans drug formulary and make sure that any medication prescribed to you is on that list. Every insurance company has a different formulary that shows what they cover. The out of pocket cost of an uncovered prescription can be in the hundreds of dollars so make sure that you are covered.
Many people do not take full advantage of their health care FSAs (flexible spending accounts), to supplement healthcare expenses not covered by their regular insurance. FSAs are a form of healthcare insurance that fills in the gaps and can be extremely useful in covering health care costs you may incur.
When searching for the best health insurance plan for your specific needs, consider using the services of an independent insurance broker. A good broker will understand the fine points of a wide range of insurance policies and can help with the legwork needed to shop around for the best rates. In addition, a good broker is likely to know of a much broader swath of plans and providers then you will find on your own. Just make sure any broker you consider is credentialed with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
Your employer may offer you a health insurance plan but it may not be the plan that is going to be the best one for you and your family. Be sure to check the limitations of the plans before enrolling for it. Just because your employer has selected this policy to offer does not mean that it is best for you.
The details of a health insurance policy are always changing. That is why it is important you keep up with its changes. For example, you could go to your doctor and find out you need a procedure that your insurance will not cover. For any questions you may have, you can call your insurance company.
Opting for a catastrophic coverage requires some research. You need to make a list of the catastrophes you think you could possibly face and then ensure whichever policy you choose covers them all. If you purchase catastrophic health insurance, be sure to set up an account called: Health Savings Account. You must then make regular deposits. This will enable you to pay your deductible in the event of a catastrophe.
Make a list of your priorities when it comes to health insurance. If you like a certain doctor you may want to look for providers that will include him or her. Maybe you don't care who you see, and just want lower premiums. Everyone has different needs, so figure out exactly what you require before you more info contact any of the companies.
Take advantage of preventative care benefits to save money and of course, your health. Most preventative screenings and procedures are covered by health insurance at no charge to the enrollee including vaccinations so stay up to date on everything your policy provides. By doing this now you can save a lot later.
Don't let your old policy expire before you get a new one. If you have a group insurance plan that is going to be terminated, you also have the option of the COBRA Act, which is short for Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. You should consider this before getting a new policy.
Health insurance not only benefits you, but it benefits everybody. But, learning about health insurance can be overwhelming. Your best strategy is to constantly research the things relevant to you in health insurance. Use the advice provided to you in this article to obtain the best health insurance policy for your needs.
The Real Costs of Seeking Care for COVID-19 Vary Across and Within Major U.S. Cities
Castlight Health's COVID-19 Cost Analysis Finds Outpatient Evaluation Costs Vary Widely Depending on Severity of Symptoms, Geography, and Provider Type"While the test for COVID-19 may be made available at no cost, individuals seeking care for suspected COVID-19 may be faced with other significant out-of-pocket costs for that care. Sadly, those bills may be coming right as many Americans are losing their paychecks, creating real affordability of care issues," said Maeve O'Meara, CEO of Castlight Health. "Costs vary widely across cities in the U.S., within cities, and depending on the site of care. During this public health emergency, it is more important than ever that people have the tools they need to find high quality care in a timely and affordable manner."
Although the coronavirus relief measures signed by the President in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act have directed private health plans to waive the cost of the specific coronavirus test and visit associated with it, people who are symptomatic and seek care may be responsible for other costs required for an evaluation for COVID-19. These could include influenza testing, chest x-rays, and bacterial, viral, or blood culture tests. These costs can add up quickly, particularly for the 27.5 million people with no insurance or those who have high-deductible health plans and will pay for services out-of-pocket.
The severity of COVID-19 varies widely, from mild cough and fever, to chest pains and shortness of breath, which can drastically affect the necessary treatment, need for hospitalization, and associated costs.
Most notably, the analysis found that:
Within a given U.S. city, average prices vary greatly for patients exhibiting standard COVID-19 symptoms including fever, cough, and shortness of breath:
In Los Angeles, the cost for a primary care visit and standard lab testing ranges from $304 to $4447—roughly a 14-fold difference.
In Dallas, the cost for the same services ranges from $193 to $4308—a 22-fold difference.
Similarly, in Miami, these services range in cost from $354 to $5729—a 16-fold difference.
Costs also vary widely depending on the provider type or site of care:
Even without symptoms severe enough to warrant further imaging or lab testing, a visit to evaluate respiratory symptoms can cost someone living in the New York metro area an average of $79 for a telehealth visit, $235 for a primary care visit, $352 for an urgent care visit, and $2,321 for an ER visit.
In Miami, patients can expect costs for evaluating symptoms to average $79 for using telehealth as their entry point, $189 for visits through a primary care provider, $483 for visits through an urgent care provider, and $1,524 if they enter the system through the ER.
"During this incredibly stressful pandemic outbreak, it is critical that people have a clear understanding of the care they need, and how much that care is likely to cost," said Dena Bravata, MD, MS, Castlight Advisor and former Senior Scholar at the Stanford Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research. "Castlight's COVID-19 Cost Analysis sheds light on the vastly different costs patients seeking care associated with COVID-19 will see depending on where they live, and where they choose to receive care."
Methodology
The primary source of data used for this analysis is a subset of 2.5 billion de-identified medical claims for primary care, urgent care, emergency room, lab tests, and x-ray supplemented with:
Provider directory data (e.g., which doctors provide which type of care).
Provider rate sheets.
Publicly available data.
The costs provided are for a member in their deductible phase seeing in-network providers. The ranges provided are for the 5th to the 95th percentile of costs in that metropolitan region.
The components of an evaluation for a patient seeking care associated with COVID-19 depend on their symptom severity and site of care. The procedures and services we included are:
Site of care: telehealth visit, primary care visit, urgent care visit, ER visit.
Care for moderate COVID-19 symptoms: initial cost of a provider visit, influenza test, sputum culture and sensitivity, blood culture and sensitivity, complete blood count, and comprehensive metabolic panel.
Care for severe COVID-19 symptoms: initial cost of a provider visit, all lab tests listed above, and a chest x-ray.
Click here to download the full report.
About Castlight Health
Castlight is on a mission to make it as easy as humanly possible for its users to navigate the healthcare system and live happier, healthier, more productive lives. Our health navigation platform connects hundreds of health vendors, benefits resources, and plan designs into one comprehensive health and wellbeing experience. We guide individuals—based on their unique profile—to the best resources available to them, whether they are healthy, chronically ill, or actively seeking medical care. Castlight transforms the employee benefit experience into a deeply personalized, yet simple, guided one, empowering better-informed patient decisions to unlock better healthcare outcomes and maximizing return on healthcare investments.
For more information visit www.castlighthealth.com. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn and Like us on Facebook.
https://edition.cnn.com/business/newsfeeds/prnewswire/202003200600PR_NEWS_USPR_____SF57329.html
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1epF3asROLV-VbQsc3q4D-KoTPNFSY6wW-ygZRY4xrAo/edit#slide=id.gb305dd1d5e_0_6