There are a number of health insurance carriers marketing a wide range of health insurance policies in Florida and therefore,
the customers have myriad options to choose from. The topic of health insurance is broad and it is a baffling task to compare between various health insurance plans to decide which one is the best for an individual or family. While comparing between various health insurance plans,
consumers need to take into account a set of factors including costs of premiums, the approved network of physicians, value of out-of-pocket maximum, and the number and types of services covered by the plan. While these are some of the crucial factors for comparison, there are also other things that customers need to know.
The first and foremost task in finding a suitable health insurance plan is to analyze the different types of insurance plans and decide which kind of plan will work best for your specific requirements, health condition and situation in addition to your financial position.
Most conventional kinds of health insurance plans do not require referrals for visiting a specialist. It does not restrict you in choosing your physician. While they feature deductibles and copayments, they require filing for claims.
A Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans require that the subscribers first see their primary care physician before going to a specialist. They generally feature low deductibles and co-payments. There is a lot of files to maintain and paper work to do while making claims.
A Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plans usually provide a great degree of flexibility when compared to HMO plans in the way they do not mandate visiting the primary care physician before consulting a specialist. However, these plans charge considerably more for visiting a doctor who is not in the preferred service providers’ network.
A Point of Service plan (POS) resembles the PPO plans in several regards. However, they do not cover many services as the other kinds of plans do.
One of the most important aspect while comparing between plans is comparing their premium costs. This is in fact a very important aspect of comparison in case you look forward to fit in your insurance costs into a budget. In most cases, insurance premiums are paid on monthly basis. The ratesof premiums depend on the services provided and the value of deductibles. When the premiums are lower, you will have coverage only for a few services and you will have a higher deductible to meet. If you are working within budgets, you need to consider this aspect with due importance.
Next you need to weigh the deductible amounts. Deductible can be understood as the amount you need to pay before the policy starts offering coverage. If you do not evaluate this aspect and you and your family happen to face a number of health concerns, then a higher deductible will not burden you.
3Examine deductible amounts. A deductible is the amount you must pay out before your insurance policy will start paying for services. If you don't foresee that it might hamper the performance of your health insurance plan. If you or your family will have many health concerns over the next year, a high deductible won't hurt your family budget. On the other hand, if you foresee a surgical procedure or a critical illness, then a lower deductible might prove beneficial in saving your money over a long term.
The next step is to analyze the services covered by the plans. Some policies do not offer coverage for mental health services or a number of physical and occupational therapeutic processes. If you have any need for such procedures, then it is advisable that you go for a policy that has room for such treatments. On the other hand, if you are looking forward to only conventional health care services, then the line of general policies available in the market will suffice your requirements. While comparing between plans, you also need to consider other issues like co-payments, list of physicians in the network, maximum benefit amounts, prescription coverage and out of pocket maximum.
