If you are requesting a health insurance quote the details of the plan are important and there several questions that you should always ask. Merely considering the premium you are being asked to pay is insufficient and you must look at a number of different things including any limitations, exclusions, additional fees and payment requirements, restrictions on where treatment can be received and several other things.
Below are a number of important things that you must always look at whenever you are purchasing health insurance:
1. What out-of-pocket expenses and deductibles am I going to have to pay? Your premiums are merely the beginning and the majority of plans require you to meet your bills up to a specified amount before your insurance plan kicks in. Thereafter, you will generally also have to make a payment towards the cost of each individual bill.
2. Are medical examinations and health screenings covered under the plan? Examine the plan to find out whether or not the plan covers you for routine medical examinations including such things as mammograms, breast exams and pap smears for women.
3. How are referrals and specialist care treatments dealt with? Examine the procedures to be followed if you need to be referred for specialist care and whether or not there are any special provisions for meeting the cost of specialist treatment.
4. What level of cover is provided for emergency care and hospital treatment? {Take a good look to see whether or not you will have to have prior approval for hospital or emergency treatment. It may seem crazy but some policies will not let you ask for emergency care without the prior approval of a specific physician.
5. Is cover provided for prescription medicines? Some plans limit the medications that can be prescribed frequently stating that a list of generic drugs rather than brand name drugs have to be prescribed. You also need to look very carefully at what percentage of any cost you will have to meet for medicines.
6. Is cover for vision and dental care provided? A lot of plans do not cover vision and dental care at all although some limit care to just routine annual eye and dental checkups.
7. Is psychiatry, psychotherapy and other mental health care provided? Not all plans will provide cover for these areas and when cover is provided you must look very carefully at the extent of the cover being offered.
8. Is hospital, nursing home and home care covered? It is very important to examine the extent to which cover is provided for care in a nursing home, hospital or at home and whether or not there is a ceiling on any cover.
9. Is physiotherapy and rehabilitation cover given? Accident or illness frequently requires rehabilitation or physiotherapy and so it is important to look at the extent to which these are covered.
10. Is alternative therapy covered? As more and more of people are choosing alternative treatments such as the use of holistic treatments or acupuncture you need to check to see whether these are covered if this is something that you want to make use of.
The premium you will be paying for your health insurance plan is of course very important but you should remember that it is just one small element of the overall package you are purchasing.
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