Understanding Temporary or Short Term Health Insurance
If you are a student who has just finished college then you might find that you are no longer covered under a family health insurance plan and will need to arrange some sort of cover until you get a job and fall within an employer's health care plan. Similarly, if you have recently taken up a new job, you could find that you are required to work for some time before you can join his health care scheme. These are only two of the various reasons which lead to a need for us affordable short term health insurance insurance coverage.
But just what is short term health insurance coverage?
Well, as its name implies, it is simply health insurance coverage which gives you health cover for a limited period of time and gives you the security of maintaining cover while moving from one permanent health insurance plan to another. Cover is usually given to provide benefits for between one month and one year, although a lot of companies today limit plans to a maximum of six months. In most cases insurers also know that consumers can find it hard to know exactly how long they will need short term medical insurance cover and so are frequently flexible about allowing an extension of cover past the original expiry date if necessary.
Temporary health insurance policies usually provide similar cover to that seen on permanent policies but there are some very important differences.
Policies are usually indemnity policies and will not give cover for preventative treatments, such as check-ups, and will also exclude such things as optical and dental coverage. Work-related injury and illness and pre-existing health conditions are also generally excluded.
Your short term plan will normally cover you for emergency medical treatment, prescription medicines, hospital treatment, x-rays, ambulance services and, in some cases, in-home medical treatment.
So, how do you go about getting short term health coverage?
Your first step should be to decide how many weeks you need the coverage for and exactly when you need it to commence. You then need to locate an agent who specializes in arranging short term health cover.
Study any policies offered with care and pay special attention to any exclusion clauses and do not be afraid to ask questions about anything which concerns you. Check through the application form and ensure that all of your personal details are correct before you sign anything. Additionally, do not forget to retain a copy of all the paperwork for your own files.
The cost of short term health insurance will vary according to the type of coverage which you choose. You can however keep the cost down by selecting to have a high deductible added to the plan (this is the sum of money which you have to pay towards your health care before the plan starts to pay). For instance, you might select a 50/50 co-insurance option (the split in the payment for every bill after the deductible has been met) rather than the more normal 80/20 ratio.
Also, don't forget that there are some extras which you might want to think about depending on your particular circumstances. For instance, with the high and rising cost of prescription drugs, you could be better off paying for the coverage rather than leaving it off.
Certainly the most important thing to remember is to look at any short term health insurance plan with care and ensure you are being offered the coverage which you want and which you will be paying for.
If you are currently without cover then take this opportunity to get a free quote for affordable short term health insurance.
Capitation: A method of paying for health care services on the basis of the number of patients who are covered for specific services over a specified period of time rather than the cost or number of services that are actually provided.
Health maintenance organization (HMO): A health care system that assumes or shares both the financial risks and the delivery risks associated with providing comprehensive medical services to a voluntarily enrolled population in a particular geographic area, usually in return for a fixed, prepaid fee.
Peer review: The analysis of a clinician's care by a group of that clinician's professional colleagues. The provider's care is generally compared to applicable standards of care, and the group's analysis is used as a learning tool for the members of the group.
Underwriting requirements: Requirements, sometimes relating to group characteristics or financing measures, that MCOs at times impose in order to provide health care coverage to a given group and which are designed to balance a health plan's knowledge of a proposed group with the ability of the group to voluntarily select against the plan (antiselection).
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