How To Choose a Health Insurance Plan

Choosing a health insurance plan is an important process that will impact your health and budget in many ways. This makes finding the right one for yourself and your dependents too important to get it wrong but knowing the steps can help you get there. When you first choose a market and then a plan type, you can narrow down your choices to the best and compare them for price and coverage. A broker can help you with this process and answer any questions that come up during the search.

Choose a Market

Your first step to choosing an insurance plan is to choose the market where you will look. This can include employer, government or private insurance markets. Your employer is usually the cheapest marketplace for your health insurance, but some companies do not offer this coverage, or your needs are not met by the policies offered through your job. This means you can see if you qualify for the federal government’s market or investigate private ones with the help of Colorado health insurance brokers.

Choose a Plan Type

There are different types of plans which have varying coverages and compensation methods. Health Maintenance Organizations, HMOs, and Exclusive Provider Organizations, EPOs usually have lower out-of-pocket costs and limit providers, while Preferred Provider Organizations, PPOs, and Point Of Service Plans, POS, will have higher out-of-pocket and fewer provider restrictions. Some of these can also be High Deductible Health Plans which are eligible for a Health Savings Plan, these have lower premiums and higher out-of-pocket costs which are eligible for a tax-advantaged account you can use for medical costs.

Narrow Down Choices

Choosing a market and plan type will narrow down your choices considerably, but to get to the right one for your needs, it is important to compare things like networks and providers covered, total costs and any perks associated with the plan. The network important to ensure that your doctors and local hospitals are covered, as well as any procedures you are likely to need. When you combine the premiums and out-of-pocket expenses, such as prescriptions and copays, you can see the total costs of each plan. Some perks can include fitness plan deductions, online portals or virtual doctor visits.

Choosing a health insurance plan means looking at many variables to determine the true costs and comparing things like covered providers, prescription plans and even perks. You can work with a broker to see which options are the best for your needs as well as have any questions answered such as if virtual doctor visits are covered or if you can still use your local hospital.

 

Disclaimer: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.