Important Questions To Ask When Choosing Insurance Coverage
When was the last time you sat down and actually thought about your insurance coverage? Let’s face it, it’s not exactly on the weekly “to do list” for a wide variety of reasons and so… it’s not surprising that many are caught unprepared when an emergency happens. One thing to remember is that you don’t have to live in an area susceptible to a major disaster (i.e. living in an earthquake or hurricane prone area) to suddenly realize that your current insurance coverage is woefully out of date.
Purchasing insurance is clearly a daunting task for many, but because it’s more or less a necessary evil I’ve listed a number of key factors to consider when you finally do take the time to make sure your coverage is up to par.
Pre Existing Conditions and Full Disclosure
Before being approved for any insurance coverage all applications are looked at by an underwriter. It’s an underwriter job to pretty much look at everything about you related to your medical history, when you apply for any type of individual health insurance policy.
Be honest about everything and be sure to disclose any pre-existing conditions because in most instances the underwriter will find out about them anyway and if they do and you failed to mention them you could get denied coverage. And even if the underwriter doesn’t catch a pre-existing condition that you failed to mention and you do get approved you’re still not in the clear. The reason, if you ever file a claim before payment they’ll look at your history again and if they find out about your pre-existing condition at that time, not only will they deny your claim but you could also be guilty of fraud and have to pay a fine, maybe something even worse.
Although many companies will not insure pre-existing conditions, some will but only with a 30, 60, 90, and 120+ waiting period while others are legally mandated to carry “guaranteed issue” policies. Prior to signing on with a company, get a detailed list of what is considered a pre-existing condition, the exclusionary period and the type of coverage that will be provided once the exclusion ends.
Rate Comparison
Of course, rates are important but remember to get quotes on policies that have the same type of coverage. Get a copy of all quotes so that you can see the type and amount of coverage in each category and then make sure that every quote you get is based on those same coverage amounts so that as the saying goes… you are comparing apples to apples. If you receive a quote that is way below quotes from other companies make sure it’s legitimate by asking how they can offer coverage at such a reduced rate. The answer may be that a particular company specializes in a particular type of coverage and so they offer it at a substantially lower rate but then again… if it’s too good to be true then it usually is. So remember, a good dose of skepticism will carry you a long way.
Dealing with Independent Agents
Many independent insurance agents are truly a treasure chest of valuable information about the insurance industry as a whole but perhaps even more importantly, they can also provide you with feedback from other clients about a given insurance company, their products and customer service.
You’re the Boss So Have It Your Way
Because you and your family are the ones that will have to live with consequences of whatever coverage you decide to choose, it’s truly imperative that you think through your wants and needs before deciding on the type of coverage to choose. One question you may want to ask yourself is… How important is it for you to the have the option of picking your own doctors? If it’s not an issue, then perhaps an HMO would be a good cost-saving option to consider. On the other hand, if you have a favorite doctor and come hell or high water you want to see them then you may want to consider the pricier PPO.Cheap Medical Insurance, Health Insurance, insurance, Low Cost Health Insurance, Medical Insurance
Regardless of what company you ultimately decide upon, it’s imperative that its products and coverage options can grow with you and your changing needs. As a result, a company that specializes in catastrophic coverage may not be the best course of action if you’re planning on having children.
A few other important factors to consider when choosing coverage are: add-ons, deductibles, customer service and rate increases.
Bundling or Add Ons
Combining or bundling multiple coverage’s together. If this is a feature that is important to you then you need to make sure it’s an option your insurance company offers. An example of bundling or “add-ons” would be to combine short and long-term disability, drug coverage or dental and vision coverage into a single package.
Deductibles and Co-Pay
Always look at and ask about the small print. A few good questions are, “What are you co-pay options” or “Is there an annual cap on the co-pays?” or “Do the caps cover any 365-day period or do they follow the traditional calendar year?”
You should always look into a companies standing with the Better Business Bureau and if it’s important for you to have access to a local agent then make sure they have a local office. If not, give the company a call and get a feel for hold times, hours of operation and services offered via telephone and the internet.
Unexpected Rate Increases
Ask friends about their experiences with the company. Have they had any problems service or rate increases in the past two years? This will be a fairly decent measure of the possible rate changes that will await you in the future.
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Individual Dental Insurance 101
Finding providers who offer individual dental insurance plans may be difficult but not impossible. So do not let this minor point stop you from finding an insurance provider, because having dental insurance fulfills two great benefits:
Excellent Oral Health
ADA studies have shown that cleanings and regular dental check ups is one of the best ways to keep ones’ teeth and gums healthy, and safe from diseases. Many plans provide and pay for the insured to go for regular dental check ups. An African Bush Doctor’s Prescription For Better Health
Relief From Costly Dental Bills
Cavities, root canals, crowns and teeth extraction are an unpleasant reality. Without dental insurance, these simple procedures can become expensive. Many dental insurance providers offer plans where they pay for a bigger percentage or pay for the entire dental procedure.
What To Consider In The Search For Individual Dental Insurance Providers
Short or no waiting period
Some dental insurance providers impose a waiting period, to ensure that the old problems from the previous provider are not carried over to the new plan. This can be a problem for you if you need to undergo a procedure, but the new dental insurance has a waiting period of 6 to 8 months before you can avail of the coverage. You will end up paying for this treatment out of your pocket. So, do not delay your search for a dental insurance plan.
Buyer Plans or referral plans
Consider third party companies, which offer referral plans. Under this arrangement, the individual pays a monthly fee to a third party to gain access to dentists who have agreed to a reduced fee schedule. The third party’s services involve securing individuals to dentists. The individual pays the discounted dental fee directly to the dentist.
Independent insurance carriers
You can easily find these carriers on the net or the yellow pages. The better ones offer a flexible dental insurance plan, which can be written as stand-alone coverage or as a part of your present dental insurance plan.
Some of these carriers provide plans with the following benefits:
• The flexibility to seek treatment from your preferred dentist, but they will offer you bigger discounted fees if you choose a dentist from their network.
• Inform you what the contracted rate is for the treatment before you undergo this.
• Provide you complete coverage from preventive services such as check ups to major procedures like full dentures.
Individual Health Insurance Company – Why Should I Look For One?
Even though many people choose whether or not to take a job, as well as keep a job, based on benefits such as a great health insurance package, not all employers offer health insurance packages. And, they are not required to. If you work for an employer such as a small-business owner, chances are you are not going to be able to get health insurance through your job. Unless you are married and can be added on to your spouse’s health insurance, you will most likely need to look into purchasing an individual health insurance.
Other people who will be interested in finding individual health insurance include those who are unemployed for various reasons, including the return to school, and those who are self-employed. The good news for self-employed individual health insurance policy holders is that the insurance premium is tax-deductible.
With the seemingly steady rise of already expensive medical costs, health insurance is something everyone needs. Health insurance offers a sense of financial security as well as peace of mind. The number of people in America who are currently without some type of health insurance is always astounding. Having health insurance helps protect you and your family from financial disasters in the all too often event of a major injury or illness. Even if the medical situation is not quite as severe, it is still better to have health insurance to help with the medical costs than not have it.
Remember, most all of us have other bills of some sort that must be paid. It will be difficult to manage payment of them all once those medical bills start rolling in and you do not have health insurance to help with the costs. It is true that an individual health insurance company is most likely going to have much higher rates and much more limited coverage, but if purchasing individual health insurance is your last option, it is one you should definitely take.
Individual Health Insurance Quotes
Health is one of the most important issues for us. Taking care of health is not just about curing various diseases, or even merely preventing various maladies that might have an adverse effect on the general health of the people. The first step for an individual who wishes to take good care of himself is to have a comparative evaluation of health insurance quotes from a considerable number of health insurance plan providers. This facilitates the individual to make informed decisions about the exact kind of health insurance plans into which he or she wants to enter.
Individual health insurance quotes are available in various health insurance companies whose work is based on a large-scale area. These individual health insurance works are conducted throughout the cities of The United States.
Individual health insurance quotes that are up to one’s expectations can be found in various ways. They are often available through an employer. Sometimes you can even find them on the web.
Although the business is quite crucial as it involves the issue of people’s health, various types of laws and acts of regulations have to be inflicted on these and their activities. Therefore an individual does not have to worry about the various formalities and technical problems if he or she wants to get a quote on the health insurance. There are a number of different types of rules depending on the type of the individual health insurance one wants to make use of. These rules depend on the insurance coverage purchased directly by individuals or on behalf of an employee-based health insurance plan.
Inexpensive Whole Life Insurance
We live in an age where knowledge is power. We are bombarded with information through various media. Although we are overloaded with information, it certainly has made our decision-making processes easier. The Internet is one such powerful medium that offers information and advice at a fraction of cost.
Whole life insurance is costlier than term insurance but provides more benefits. One might ask if there is a way to find whole life insurance policies that are inexpensive. There are Internet insurance services that offer inexpensive quotes. Even a close investigation among friends and relatives might reveal insurance products that are inexpensive. But as the saying goes, “there is no free lunch”.
When searching for inexpensive quotes, Internet services bring forward a template of questions to be answered such as age, history of diseases and smoking and drinking habits. In essence, the questions are designed to find out how healthy an individual is. Often, the younger the individual one, the better the chances of good health; additionally, the absence of smoking and drinking habits reveals that the chances of getting fatal diseases are less. The quote may be less expensive only if the answers indicate good health and chances of long living.
Insurance providers exist to make a profit. The way to increase their bottom-line profit is to increase the revenue from premiums and to decrease the chances of giving death benefits. This can be done by obtaining young and healthy policyholders. Hence, the clue to obtaining inexpensive insurance policies is to purchase a policy when one is young and to stop smoking. The policy for a non-smoker may be 10-20% less expensive than that for a smoker. It is difficult to get an inexpensive policy when one falls ill. So it is beneficial to get a policy when one is still healthy. It is advised to get quotes from different companies for the same policy and to ask free opinions from friends and relatives before buying a policy.
All of this information essentially means that there is no inexpensive insurance policy. It all depends on the individual and the needs.