Many people have different takes on what they consider affordable health insurance Florida.  Is the premium your driving force in determining whether or not a plan is affordable?  Well, if it is, you might wind up owing stacks of money if and when claim time arrives.  Don’t feel alone.  Most people shop for insurance in the same way.   I don’t think “getting” an “instant quote” helps anyone at all.  It usually deters a prospective buyer from wanting to receive help from a licensed independent agent.

I speak with many people during the day and I am suprised at the overwhelming percentage of those people who are only focused on price with little regard of how the plan pays or operates.  I am not talking about Doctor visits here, I am talking about a plan’s design to pay a large in-patient hospital claim.  Often times, most people are only concerned about how much a Doctor copay is and do not consider what insurance is really for.  It is to pay for claims you can’t afford, like a rolling claim for cancer.  I am more interested in educating my client on how to make a plan affordable without sacrificing insurance carrier payouts for enormous bills that will shock you.

For the purpose of this topic, let’s assume you are looking at true major medical insurance plan designs.  A good independent agent should NEVER skimp on areas of a policy that does not cover chemotherapy or outpatient services in return for a few dollars in premium savings.  No two plans act exactly the same (there are usually slight differences), but reputable carriers do offer a wide array of plan designs to fit your budget.  This can be harmful if you are not educated on what to look for.

What you can do to make a plan affordable is simply raise the major medical deductible as high as your tolerance level allows.  As long as the plan covers the major types of medical charges, you are in good shape.  What’s the difference if you owe an extra $1,000 toward your deductible, but receive zero coverage for chemotherapy?  Just so you know, chemo costs on average $11,000 per treatment.  A plan that does not cover this will leave you holding the bag on those charges, plus ask you to satisfy your deductible.  If you are in-network and your plan covers chemo, then you are only responsible for your deductible and any coinsurance (if selected).

By the way, adding coinsurance is another way to lower your deductible.  It is a percentage split between you and the carrier (80/20…the carrier pays the larger percentage) after your deductible is met.  Good plans give you a stop-loss amount so that you don’t owe 20% of the rest of the bill, just 20% up to another two or three thousand additional dollars.  Then the plan pays 100% of covered charges.  Not bad and the rates do really drop using this method.

There are a few more ways to deliver affordable health insurance Florida like stripping a Doctor copay off your policy, without blocking Doctor visit coverage entirely.  Give us a call at 352-200-2066 to gain more understanding about this aspect.  RTC Insurance Advisors is always putting clients first and will make sure you receive a plan that won’t leave you high and dry.  Make it a great day.