US Health Insurance Options

Do You Need US Health Insurance?

It is not easy to go without health insurance in the US. Medical costs are skyrocketing, and you may be afraid to get treated, or even get a checkup, if you are not covered. How can you find an affordable American health plan that protects you in case you get sick or injured?

Employer Group Health

One common way to find coverage is through a group plan at work. Millions of Americans belong to employer health plans that cover the worker and their families. One benefit of a group plan is that the company usually picks up part of the bill.

This is still probably your best choice if you are lucky enough to work at a company with a job related group benefit.

Individual and Family Health Insurance

Not all of us get our health care plans from work. Millions of self employed people must purchase their own coverage. Some employers, especially small companies, do not provide this benefit either. There are plenty of individual and family health insurance companies that want to compete for the business of self employed people though.

There are a variety of individual health plans on the market. Many people can adjust coverage or deductibles to find a plan that fits their family budget. If you do not have group health from an employer, you should comparison shop before you just assume you cannot afford insurance.

Medicare Health Insurance

Millions of retired or disabled Americans rely on Medicare. This is the US federal health insurance plan for older people and disabled people. Some people just use the basic Medicare plan, while others use supplements, Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, or Part D plans to supplement this coverage. There are plans to cover medical needs and prescriptions.

High Risk Pools

Every US state has some plan in place to help cover people who do not have group health, and who got declined by private insurers for coverage. The plans do differ by state, so it is important to find out how your own state handles this issue.

Not everybody qualifies for a high risk pool. Sometimes the premiums are pretty high because it is high risk coverage. But this is one option to explore if you have a pre-existing health condition. Right now, there is not a perfect and low cost solution to the problem of covering people with pre-existing health issues, but hopefully we will see more programs in the future after health reform systems are put in place.

Low Income Health Insurance

Medicaid is the state and federal program for low income people with very few assets. The Childrens Health Insurance Plan (CHIPS) covers children from low to moderate income families. CHIPS has also started to cover pregnant women.

There are also other programs that can help. Many county hospital systems have their own programs. There are also low income clinics and foundations that provide financial aid. One good place to look is the PPARX.org website. Though it was founded to help people afford prescriptions it has a lot of information on finding help for all sorts of medical issues.

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