Health Insurance – Hold on to your wallet, January is coming
October 28, 2009
While shopping for Halloween candy and last minute costume necessities, we have all become aware that holiday decor and those seasonal song favorites are quickly spreading to every isle of our local store. Before we can say “trick or treat” the holidays will have passed and we will be celebrating the arrival of 2010! With the arrival of a new year, we are often forced to revisit our health insurance once again. Hopefully not because the whole family has caught a flu bug, but for something arguably as dreadful — premium increases. You may be one of the lucky ones that will not get a “happy new year” rate increase, but for many of us, we will be digging a little deeper into our pocket books come January to cover the increased premium of our current health plan. Watch your mailbox and pay special attention to any notices from your health insurance carrier. They will let you know about proposed rate increases and they very well may be notifying you very soon to give you time to make a change, should you wish to make a plan change and save the extra premium dollars. Now is the time to do this research and to put these changes in place since we all know, November and December are probably the busiest months of the entire year! If we can help, call us at (925) 627-1800.
Health Insurance News – Flu and H1N1 Vaccines: Safe? Free? Available?
October 21, 2009
The hype around flu vaccines has certainly grown exponentially this year given the scarier strains of influenza on the loose and the H1N1 virus. There is so much information floating around the internet and being reported on the news that our heads are spinning!!! What to believe and more importantly, what to do?
Doctor’s offices have even begun to email patients keeping them posted of the latest information and availability of the vaccines. But of course, we are already concerned given the reported H1N1 deaths we are hearing about as well as the rare, debilitating side effects of the vaccine itself. YIKES! These days, there seems to be nothing more scary than making the decision to get a flu shot, except maybe the scarier choice – not to get one! But…at least the vaccines will be FREE for everyone with current medical insurance plans. It has been noted that insurance companies and those administering vaccines are in agreement that the vaccines will be given at no cost to insured people.
Though reports have gone on and on about a shortage of the vaccines, current reports say that there will be plenty of the vaccine and enough for everyone. However, for starters, the vaccine will be given to people based on priority that looks similar to the following:
- ALL PEOPLE who live with/care for babies UNDER 6 months of age.
- CHILDREN 6 months through 4 years of age.
- CHILDREN age 5 to 18 years who have CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS
There is also much talk about the injectable H1N1 vaccine and the safety of some of it’s elements. The injectable H1N1 vaccine DOES contain the preservative Thimerosal. While flu vaccine containing Thimerosal is typically restricted to patients 3 years and older, California has granted an exemption allowing this H1N1 vaccine to be given to patients 6 months and older. Thimerosal-free vaccines are expected to be available at some point but nobody knows when or how much will be available.
Bottom line, we are probably best to rely on information directly from our trusted doctors and his/her team of staff. This year is not the year to skip your flu shot, but it definitely doesn’t hurt to be informed, ask questions and stay home when you are sick. Oh yea, and WASH YOUR HANDS!
If we can be of assistance to you or someone you know, give us a call at (925) 627-1800 or visits up online at www.safeguardfinancial.com
Health Insurance FAQ #2 – My rates just went up, why again?
October 14, 2009
I get hundreds of calls asking questions about rate increases. The truth is, rate increases happen. And, unfortunately, they happen OFTEN! Each carrier seems to publish new rates at different times of the year and some of them, more than once a year. Some ask for more of our money in the spring, others change things up in the summer, fall, and most reevaluate rates at the beginning of each calendar year.
For the most part, you are looking at a minimum of 1 rate change per year, but don’t be surprised if there is a second change, and sometimes even a 3rd. Yes, I really did say “three.” Above and beyond the new plan rates that each carrier settles on for the year or a couple times per year, you could face an increase in your rate because of a birthday you will be celebrating. Typically the “bigger” birthdays come every 5 years after age 30. 30, 35, 40, 45, 50… If it wasn’t tough enough to achieve these age milestones, the insurance carriers stick you with a higher medical premium because you are “old” and might start costing them more money. Now, this is not always the case — you may not pay more at each of these birthdays, but you often will.
In the case of individual and/or family plans (outside of an employer sponsored group plan) these rate increases have nothing to do with how much or how little you use your medical plan. You are still subject to the rate increases even if you have not been to the doctor at all that year or at all in 5 years. Many people think that their rate increases when they use their plan more frequently — this is NOT true.
There are options! When you get the notice that your premium is increasing 29%, you have every right to choose a new plan that suits your budget better. Often you can make these changes with no repercussions and will not even have to be subjected to underwriting — just an easy request, and your plan and premium can be changed in no time!
If we can be of assistance to you, please feel free to contact us at (925) 627-1800 or visit us online www.safeguardfinancial.com
Health Insurance Explained – Deductibles: When will I have to pay?
October 7, 2009
Deductibles here…deductibles there — It seems deductibles are everywhere! How do we know when we will have to pay?
Well, it is true, more and more medical plans (dental and vision too) have a deductible associated with most, if not, all services. Nowadays, people are more conscientious than ever about budgeting and oftentimes, big medical bills are not something we have planned for. I may be generalizing a bit to try to keep things as simple as possible, but what I am about to say is pretty standard across most medical plans that have a deductible.
First, however, and maybe most importantly, let’s make sure we are all on the same page about what we mean by “deductible.” A deductible is the amount YOU have to pay before your insurance company (medical plan) pays what they have promised to pay. Correcting a common mistake: deductibles are NOT the same as copays!!!!!
Taking a look at a medical plan summary of benefits, you will see information on the amount of the deductible and when it is, or is not going to come into play. For instance, a plan may state “deductible waived” for certain services (most commonly deductibles might be waived for preventive care and/or doctor office visits.) Other services may state a percent that the plan will pay AFTER the deductible is met. In this case, YOU are responsible to pay the amount of the deductible OR the entire amount of the bill, whichever is less. Once you have met the deductible, say it is $500, then the insurance company will pick up the percent they have promised to pay and will send you a bill for the remainder.
It gets very complicated right about here! Some deducible plans will pay 100% of covered medical expenses afer you have met the deductible. These plans are usually those with the higher deductibles, $5,000-$10,000. The alternate are those which do exactly what we described above, YOU pay the deductible AND smaller % of additional bills after the deductible is met. When will the bills stop, you ask? Medical plans will also list an “Annual Out of Pocket Maximum” for each plan. Once you reach this total in out of pocket expenses (your portion) — This is when the bills will stop! But…these deductibles and out of pocket expenses start over every year! Most, if not all health plans operate on a calendar year system, so every January, dollars start back at $0.
For help on finding the right health plan and more about deductibles and how health plans work, please call us at (925) 627-1800 or visit our website: www.safeguardfinancial.com
