Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Health Insurance Woes and How to Fix Them

For those with health insurance, the rising costs can mean the difference between going to the doctor when you are sick and only going when it is an emergency.

With the rising cost of health insurance premiums, the rising costs of prescription medications, and the rising co-payments, many people find that they have to choose when they can go to the doctor. There are some things that you can do to lower the costs of health insurance premiums and actually go to the doctor when you need to. Here are some tips and tricks that can help you lower the rising costs of premiums and other health care expenses:

Adjust co-payments - Normally, health insurance carriers will allow customers to increase their deductibles and/or co-payments to help lower the monthly premiums that they pay. This can help customers when they need to go to the doctor by reducing the premium that they have to pay. You can easily contact your health insurance provider and find out your options when it comes to reducing your premiums by increasing your deductible or co-payments.

Cut out the extras on your health insurance plan - Every health insurance company will usually load down health insurance plans with extras that most people do not need, such as eye care, dental care, life insurance, and so on. These extras can add up pretty quickly and end up raising the monthly premium that people pay for their health insurance. By simply cutting out the extras that you do not need, it can lower your premiums. You can contact your health insurance company to find out the extras that are on your health insurance plan and see which ones you can cut out to save a bit of money.

Shop around - If you think that your premiums may be too high, then shop around. There are a ton of health insurance companies out there, and they are all trying to win more business. It is easy to shop around and see which company will give you the services you need and want for the lowest price. You may even find that you can save hundreds of dollars on your insurance plan by simply shopping around.

Switch your prescription plan - Some health insurance companies offer different prescription drug benefits that you can choose from. While this may mean that you pay more for prescription medications, it may mean a significant decrease in your health insurance premiums.

Of course, there are plenty of other ways that you can save money on your health insurance and medical care costs. These are just a few ways that you can cut back on the amount of money that you are spending on your health insurance premiums each month.



Bradley Palmer is with Grouphealthflorida.com offering Florida Group Health Insurance. To learn more about group health insurance, visit http://www.grouphealthflorida.com.