Friday, October 16, 2009

Don't Buy Medical Care insurance…

And and believe that you are finished comparing prices and benefits. health carrier's rates jump frequently and you can't lock in a rate for medical care protection like you can with whole life protection or a loan. Making sure that you have the lowest price for quality medical care insurance can only be done if you review your coverage every year or so.

Your major medical insurer constantly calculates the average costs of medical claims that their insureds make against their health care coverage coverage. They are constantly changing the rates. The rates will almost always go up, but each policy series may have different rate increases. You want to make sure that you are in the getting the best deal, not only now, but five years from now as well.

If you have an older insurance policy, particularly one that isn't being sold this year, it is important that you compare other plans. You'll more than likely find less expensive insurance cover available that are as good or better.

When a medical care insurance carrier stops offering a particular policy series to new members, the rates on that policy series will almost always go up faster than they will on any open plans. The reason for this is not because the age of the policy holders, but the age of their exams or underwriting. When you look at 100 clients of any given age who have just passed their medical underwriting, they are much less likely to have major claims than 100 clients of the same age whose health status was last reviewed five years ago. They have had five years to raise their blood pressure, weight and cholesterol. Many are in excellent major medical, to be sure, but when you look at the averages the newly underwritten group will almost certainly be healthier.

This means that your medical care protection rates will be lower if you are moved into the group of their policyholders who have been underwritten more recently. Make sure that you maintain or improve your good healthcare and that you regularly shop for health care insurance. Shop for a wife or a husband once, shop for insurance on a regular basis.

In order to be approved for any new medical care coverage policy your healthcare must be good. This doesn't mean that you will be denied if you have had the flu, but you might be denied if your weight doesn't meet their criteria or you are diabetic.

Perhaps one day we will have a system where everyone can qualify for medical care protection regardless of their health care status. That day is not now. If you are looking for coverage now, we need to do what we can to control the aspects of our healthcare that are within our control if we want to get the best rates.

Of course, a not insignificant side effect of being healtheir is that we get to live longer and probably more fulfilling lives. If the additional cost of a rated major medical coverage policy is the final straw that gets you to stop smoking or exercise more, your life will be better for it.

Right now we have a for profit major medical insurance system where both the protection companies and the consumers cherry pick. The coverage companies want to deny anyone who is a bad risk; consumers often avoid getting medical care protection when they are younger and healtheir.

We may have a better medical insurance system in a few years or we may just have a different one that isn't any better than the one we have now. Whether we get change or not, the system we have now favors those who compare prices and benefits and only those who are in good healthcare can compare prices and benefits so don't buy medical care protection and think that you can stop shopping and comparing costs and plan benefits.

No comments:

Post a Comment