What healthcare benefits are provided by short-term health insurance? How much does short-term health insurance plans usually cost?
Most short-term health insurance plans cover your healthcare needs for a year or even less. Some plans offer up to 36 months of coverage. When buying this type of health insurance policy, however, you need to convince the insurance company that you are generally healthy and may not be using the benefits as soon as you bought the plan. Otherwise, if you are buying one just to cover a medical procedure, your application may be disapproved. As regards the cost, short-term health insurance plans are generally cheaper than COBRA or any other types of insurance policy. Most people opt to buy temporary health insurance plans, instead of continuing on with COBRA, as they can afford to pay the monthly premiums. Premiums for this type of plan may only cost $100 a month and sometimes even less, depending on the duration and extent of health coverage. It is still important to remember, however, that you need to complete your COBRA coverage, especially if you lose your job. Otherwise, you will lose your right to buy an individual and permanent health insurance plan later on. You may also encounter difficulties in the coverage of your pre-existing conditions when you eventually buy permanent health insurance plans. If you decide to buy short-term health insurance plans, check the monthly premiums, deductible amounts, and maximum out-of-pocket cost for every injury or illness that you might have. If, for example, you are paying $75 a month for a short-term health insurance plan that has a $4,000 deductible, then you are generally paying for all your medical expenses. This type of policy will only protect you if you will suddenly experience accidents that require expensive medical procedures. So make sure that you read the provisions of the policy before buying one. Also, unlike permanent health insurance plans, short-term health insurance plans generally cover healthcare expenses that are linked to any specific injury or illness that you may suddenly have. It covers emergency services, hospitalization, medical tests, and charges for follow-up visits in case you become ill or injured during the duration of the policy. It does not usually cover preventive healthcare or pre-existing conditions. Answer by CAinsAgent– June 11, 2009 @ 10:34 pm 1 CommentLeave a comment |
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Short-term health insurance provides you with temporary healthcare benefits while you are in-between health coverages. This is the reason why it is also called temporary health insurance. If you have recently lost your health plan because you got laid off, or if you are expecting a new health plan within the year, then you can opt to buy a short-term health insurance plan to fill-in the lapses in your health coverage. So if you are in-between jobs or recent college graduates, then you can buy a short-term health insurance plan to cover for your healthcare needs while you are waiting to start on your new job.
If you are coming off a group health plan, consider the fact that purchasing a short-term health plan might affect your continuous coverage history. Make sure that whatever short-term health plan you are considering will provide creditable coverage if this is of concern. Also, don’t assume from the answer above that you can keep the same temporary health plan for 3 years. This isn’t necessarily true. Some insurance carriers may let you renew your policy for up to 36 months, but the deductibles will be reset, as well as any pre-existing condition exclusionary periods.
Comment by Moderator — June 23, 2009 @ 8:09 pm