With the rising cost of healthcare, increasingly more Americans' are no more provided coverage of health through their employers, if your healthy that could not be a bad thing. Based on your employer's health insurance cost, an individual policy might cost less. With an individual policy you get more control over your personal benefits and cost, while with group you have very little say in your choice. Individual health insurance is not tied to your task and can offer you piece of mind later if you lose your task or become un-insurable. The opportunity to reevaluate what's vital that you you when needed may possibly save you hundreds of dollars. Because the economy causes more employers and much more visitors to tighten their budgets, it can be time and energy to look at your health coverage differently, before it's too late. Group health insurance could be expensive in comparison to individual, and in the average person insurance market pre-existing health conditions can cause denial of coverage. By law no one in a group insurance plan could be denied coverage due to medical conditions such as for example heart surgeries, diabetes, bi-polar etc. and needing to insure these individuals creates a high financial risk to the insurance carriers. To help with those cost linked to the risk, the State of Missouri allows insurance carriers to improve premiums as much as 107% over the preferred rates for healthy people.* Rules vary state to convey so check with your individual states' department of insurance. Medical underwriting determines the medical risk linked to the group. Premiums are then increased accordingly and all group members pay an equal cost for these medical ailments, not only though with the conditions. Evaluating the percentage your employer will pay for you as well as your family's health insurance, in addition to the portion you pay, are important in determining if an individual policy would be less or even more favorable. read more of coverage could be drastically more expensive in case you are pay 100% of the premium yourself and your group has lots of health conditions. Insuring family on another family policy is becoming more common as families try to save. With group insurance you have less control over deductibles, co-insurance and benefits unless you are the owner or decision maker, while with individual insurance coverage the decision is yours. What one person can afford, another will not be able to. This can not always be studied in to account through the decision process in terms of group health insurance. Needs may vary from one person who visits the doctor weekly to another who may only see a medical expert every couple of years. Why pay higher premiums for benefits you may never use? Control over your money and your health for the individual situation can be maintained easier via an individual plan, not through a group. Employer paid insurance benefits could be nice but, what if you lose your job? Your employee health benefits are only good when you are employed. COBRA could possibly be available but you are 100% responsible for medical insurance premium. On COBRA you're in charge of the portion your employer has been covering. Another scenario to consider is what goes on if throughout your employment you experienced open- heart surgery, was diagnose with diabetes, had a severe car crash or can't work? Your only options would be COBRA if there is a choice and only during the allowable benefit period, a HIPPA plan, state option where available, or to go without insurance. The Missouri Insurance Health Pool may be the state of Missouri's resource, but it is very expensive and contains limitation. With an individual plan you own it for as long as you pay the premiums. If the premium is considerably significantly less than your group insurance it could be easier to pay. Just as group insurance costs are on the rise, so are the average person insurance charges. Premiums do increase with age as well as your area's claims history, not by your individual insurance usage with individual coverage. Insurance carriers are constantly battling for business and additionally battle they will bring out new plans, lower rates or both frequently. So long as you remain healthy, your wellbeing policy should be re-evaluated annually to greatly help save you money. An unbiased agent's job will include offering you annual updated quotes, and most carriers ought to be available through the agent for honest comparisons. Individual policies can't be affect by other health conditions and/ or decisions, but derive from you alone while permitting you some freedom of preference. Escalating insurance costs are currently causing more business' to cut benefits or eliminate insurance all together. Consumers are also trying to cut their very own cost as our economy brings more worry, what better time to spend less than now? Evaluating between your employer health insurance options or purchasing a person insurance policy could save you hundreds of dollars annually. Investigate all options available to you and call an independent agent for a free second opinion. Most agents are happy to sit down, help educate you and present you a genuine comparison of what is available for your situation. Make sure you ask the questions you may have, in the end you have nothing to loss and only money to get. Sandra Reeves, owner of The Reeves Group in St. Charles Missouri, is an independent insurance professional who focuses on health, life and Long Term Care insurance. Educating consumers on insurance is not just employment but a pleasure around. Visit our website for our monthly newsletter at http://www.thereevesgrp.com Resources useful for this article are: *Missouri Department of Insurance website at http://www.insurance.mo.gov including articles bought at this site- Options once you medical health insurance is terminated and SMALL COMPANY Health Insurance.
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