Catastrophic Coverage Health Insurance – Pros And Cons

A growing number of employers are giving a choice of catastrophic health coverage or comprehensive coverage these days. Of course, like everything else, there is good news and bad news about this choice. In general, catastrophic health coverage may not provide adequate health care for the average person. Consider these points before purchasing catastrophic health coverage.

Comprehensive health insurance addresses most of the common areas of health care needs. Doctor visits, tests, emergency care and other common situations are usually covered under comprehensive health care. A deductible per incident usually applies. This can be anywhere from $250 to $1000. With low deductibles and co-pays the average persons costs are lower costs. This enables people to afford medical care.

With Catastrophic Health Insurance , you will have lower monthly premiums, but the deductible will be much higher. It can run from twelve hundred to five thousand dollars. And you will also have to deal with a maximum payout amount. This could be a million to three million dollars. Once you have hit the limit, you will have no more coverage.

Initially, it may seem that these low premiums that can be enjoyed with Catastrophic Health Insurance would make it something you would want. However, that is not always true. Be that as it may, many people buy it since they cannot afford comprehensive insurance. They may believe Catastrophic Health Insurance is better than none. This may be true if you are in good general health and have the money you will need to pay the deductible, when necessary. So if you needed surgery, you would have to have the $5000 for the deductible. And you would have to pay that $5000 before your insurance company would pay anything for your surgery. Bear in mind the fact that Catastrophic Health Insurance doesnt address standard medical expenses like doctor visits, tests, etcetera. It is only good for catastrophes.

catastrophic health coverage can be very good in combination with a standard comprehensive health plan. In this case, you can combine the two, using your basic plan to take care of your basic needs. Once you have spent up to the deductible on your catastrophic health coverage , it may kick in. that is a very good thing, because basic, comprehensive plans often do not cover expensive, long-term illnesses.

If you are thinking about catastrophic health coverage as your main coverage, you may want to consider adding a Health Savings Account. This is a savings account that you would establish specifically for medical expenses with your high deductible being considered a medical expense. If you need to use your insurance, you would get your deductible from this account. The nicest thing about it is that this money and its interest are tax free as long as you use them only for medical expenses.

With a Health Savings Account, you can save money that is earmarked for medical expenses. This would be the money you would use as your deductible. The good thing about it is that this money and its interest would be counted as a deduction at tax time. This money is tax free when used for medical purposes – that is for your deductible. By doing this you are saving money and reducing your costs on an ongoing basis.

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