Group Health Insurance VS Direct Health Insurance
Group health insurance is more expensive than individual or family health insurance. This is contrary to what most people believe. The reason is that all group health insurance plans must accept everyone in the group, regardless of their health.
Group health insurance plans usually require you to commit for a year at a time. You should also know that your employer is usually required to pay half of your (but not your family's) premium. One advantage of a group health insurance policy is that your premium is usually taken out of your paycheck "pre-tax."

The most important part about an individual policy is that you own it, not your employer. As long as you continue to pay the premiums, the policy is yours. Unlike auto insurance, you cannot be singled out for a rate increase, nor can the insurance company cancel your policy based on your claims experience.

If you have health issues, you may not be able to buy a direct health insurance policy- at any price! But different companies have different underwriting guidelines. If you have health issues, or have been denied coverage before, call & ask for a free, no obligation prescreen.

Monthly Premium
This is the amount you pay your insurance company each month. You will pay this amount whether or not you use any health care services. You can expect this cost to increase every year, not only because of greed and inflation, but also because as your age increases - so do your premiums.

Deductible
A deductible is what you have to pay before your health insurance kicks in. This is a pre-set amount per year. Some times the deductible is for the whole family, sometimes times two or 3 family members. Check the policy.

Co-Insurance
You will pay the deductible first, then you will pay a percentage of the costs, until you reach the a maximum out of pocket expense, per year

For example, a common policy has a $1,000.00 deductible and a 70/30 co-insurance with a maximum out of pocket of $5,000.00.

Suppose you are hospitalized and the total bill comes to $20,000.00. You will pay your $1,000.00 deductible before your health insurance pays a dime. After that, you will pay 30% of the bill until you have paid your maximum out of pocket expense of $5000.00. Your health insurance company then pays for the rest.

Note: Some plans do not have a co-insurance. Also, the deductible does not always apply to the maximum out of pocket. Check your health insurance policy for details.

Co-pay
Traditional polices allow you to go to a doctor, and get prescriptions for a pre-determined price. A co-pay is not subject to the deductible or co-insurance, nor does the co-pay apply towards the deductible & co-insurance.

PPO
Preferred Provider Organization, also known as a "network. Emergency services are covered even if provided out of network. You can usually still go to providers not in the network, but expect to pay a lot more out of your own pocket.

HMO
Health Maintenance Organization. HMO's are basically the same thing as PPO's except that they provide a preventative service. The preventative service may also be something as trivial as a health newsletter or magazine. HMO's get a tax advantage for being an HMO. You will have to choose a "Primary Care Provider", and get referrals to see specialists.

HSA
Health Savings Account. Technically, you must purchase a “Qualified High Deductible Health Plan” and then you can open up an HSA. HSA insurance plans have a minimum deductible of $1,100.00 or, $2,200 for a family, and do not have co-pays. In other words, everyting except preventative care, such as vaccinations and your annual physical (now called a wellness benefit), is subject to the deductible. This lowers the premium. The maximum that you can put into the account per year (2008) is $2,900.00 for an individual, and $5,700.00 for a family. With an HSA policy you can open a separate bank account that you can use to pay for "qualified health care". The advantage of this is that you can put money into the account "pre tax," allowing you to lower your income taxes!

For more complete information about Health Savings Accounts go to: http://mtnhealthinsurance.com