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Easy Steps On How To Get Cheap Health Insurance Rates

These days navigating the health insurance marketplace is more difficult than ever. With constant changes and rising prices, finding the best coverage for you and your family can seem like an impossible task. This article can help you find the coverage you need at a price you can afford.

To save money on your health insurance, chose the plan that fits your needs best. There are three general health insurance organizations: HMO's-which require you to use doctors in a specific network, PPO's-which allow you to pick a doctor out of the network for a fee, and POS'-which are a combination of HMO's and PPO's.

When considering a health care insurance plan from your employer, be sure to decide the type of plan that best suits your needs. Doing so, you will help to find the best out of pocket cost versus total coverage. PPO, HMO, and POS are the three most common types of plans. Check with your company to see which best suits you.

Long-term care health insurance can help cover the cost of assisted-living facilities for the elderly. It can be expensive or impossible to get if you wait until you need coverage. The time to buy is when you are in your fifties, and it's best to look for a policy that provides protection against future cost hikes.

During the phone interviews that health insurance companies conduct before granting coverage, don't answer questions the company doesn't ask. Only give them the health information they specifically ask for. If you give them more information than they have asked for, they will note it in their files and could take what they have learned to charge you more for your premiums or remove your coverage all together.

When thinking about getting health insurance coverage, not many people think of test driving their prospective plan. This is called a free trial basis - you get your money back if you aren't happy - as long as it is canceled within a set amount of time. Check to see if this is offered in your area!

If you travel often, it is important to get medical coverage that can be used throughout the country. If you don't have this, you do not want to be visiting another state and get sick. If this were to happen, you would be stuck paying medical bills that your medical insurance would have covered, had you been in your home state.

Before re-enrolling in your current plan when annual enrollment time comes, make sure you look for changes in what is or isn't covered. Plan benefits and coverage do change, and it is worth examining all of your plan options every year to ensure that you get the best coverage for your health care needs.

You need to get health insurance so that you are protected, in case anything happens. If you do not have health insurance and break an arm, you will have to pay for the medical bills, out of pocket. A visit to the emergency room can cost over $10,000. Most people cannot afford such a hefty bill and end up in extreme financial straits because they did not have health insurance.

When shopping for health insurance, try one of the many websites that offer rates from several providers at the same time. Enter your information for the type of policy you want and find the rates for different companies offering the coverage you want. This can save not only time, but money too.

Make sure you know how much you're paying into your employer-supplied health insurance. If you end up losing your job and enrolling in COBRA you'll probably end up paying the full premium you pay now, so knowing how much you're already paying will prepare you for the worst when the time comes.

If you suddenly lose your job and apply to COBRA, you can use your health spending account funds to cover the cost of your monthly premiums. This can help you through the tough times, but ensure that you have a plan for when your HSA runs out and you have to pay out of pocket.

Leaving meat behind can save you money over time, because many insurers will give you a discount for a vegan lifestyle. It has been medically proven that poor eating check here habits are a major contributor to many health conditions. Chronic diseases can often be costly to treat. There are lots of diseases that can be prevented by implementing a vegetarian diet into your lifestyle. More than a few health insurance companies are beginning to recognize this fact. A vegetarian diet can offer numerous benefits to you, not only in terms of your overall health, but also in terms of your healthcare costs.

An added option when you need a doctor's prescription is to get the medication dose doubled. In most cases, a larger pill does not cost much more than a smaller one; you could be saving money in the long term. The pill splitter pays for itself in no time.

You need to make sure that you have fully researched as many health insurance plans as you possible can. An insurance broker may be needed if you don't have the time or the desire to go through the large amounts of information. You can also look at websites that specialize in comparing and picking insurance policies that fit the customer's needs.

Health insurance is a must have in today's society. Even if you are strapped for cash, do not let your health insurance coverage lapse. It is important to keep your coverage. If your policy does not remain in force, you may not be eligible for the same coverage if your health condition has changed. Do not risk losing your coverage, just pay the premium.

If your insurance plan offers prescription drug coverage, make sure you understand it. With some plans, you will pay a considerable amount more for brand name medications. With others, you can save by ordering a three month supply from a particular pharmacy. If you play by the rules, you'll get the medications you need and save money,too.

Don't settle on the first health insurance package that you stumble upon. If you do some research about what is available to you, you will most likely be able to come away with a better rate. There are a lot of options out there for you to compare to see what would work best for you and your budget.

Regardless of what health insurance you currently have, either through your employer, the government or private insurance, it is essential to stay on top of current health insurance news. It is important to find a health insurance company that has the coverage you need at a price you can afford.

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