By William Brister


While an individual policy is purchased by the insured directly with the insurance company, in a group Health Insurance policy, the group is the master insured and the insurance company contracts with the group. Each member gets an insurance certificate which acts as the policy. Often group health insurance is less expensive than individual policies. Additionally it may also contain certain special coverage which may have been too costly for individuals.

Employers Insurance - Million of people obtain their insurance through employment. After meeting certain criteria, the employee is eligible to be covered under the employers group insurance policy. Medical Insurance is also a common benefit of such a policy. The employers insurance policy and coverage may vary with different organizations.

Individual Insurance - Some major health insurance companies offer a broad range of coverage and options to individuals, who pay directly for the cost of the insurance. Many insurance companies require a medical examination and comprehensive details before offering coverage to the individual.

Government Sponsored Insurance - Some state governments offer affordable health insurance benefits to their residents based on their income. These plans are designed for the poorer individuals who are employed but no health care coverage is available where they work. It allows the state to protect its residents from calamitous loss due to illness, disease or accident without placing an additional burden upon its program for the extremely poor and underprivileged.

Association Sponsored Insurance - There are some health insurance benefits available to people belonging to a group or organization by virtue of membership.

Primary and Secondary Coverage Many people have medical insurance from more than one insurance plan. To prevent double recovery or the insured making profit out of the insurance plan, the insurance company make provisions to determine how primary versus secondary coverage will be determined. Primary coverage is provided through an insurance plan of which the insured is a member or the plan under which the member has been a participant for a long duration. Secondary coverage, usually as a result of being covered as a dependent under someone elses health insurance plan, provides reimbursement for medical expenses after exhaustion of coverage available through the primary plan.

There are several types of policies sold by insurance companies to individuals. Some of the common insurance plans include:

Major Medical Expenses Hospital and Surgery Hospital Confinement Indemnity Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO) Specified Diseases Short Term and Long Term Care Accident Only Policy Dental Vision Home-Health Care Limited Benefit The different types of group health coverage include:

Fully Insured Employer Group Small Employer Group Large Employer Group Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Self-Funded ERISA Association Group Group Managed Care Preferred Provider Organization



William Brister - http://www.insuranceproguide.com

By Peter De Lio

Having a good and a healthy life is one of our life's main prerogatives. To lead healthy lives and protect us from any diseases or emergencies that may occur during our lifetime, Health Insurance covers are easily available from many companies. Thus an individual or a corporate entity can apply to many health insurance companies and obtain quotes from them. After one has found a cover that suits them the most and the premium that suits their pockets, health insurance covers can be taken.
It's important to understand that you can avail of a number of health insurance plans. Depending upon the age factor, companies can offer you a variety of health insurance covers. In the US, the health insurance market is highly developed. Most plans can be categorized as managed care plans, fee for service plans, Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans etc. One can opt out of these plans also. Health insurance companies will give you an option of moving to other plans within a year also. The insurance premium will be worked out according to the health insurance plan that you subscribe to.
When a person applies for health insurance, they are asked a few questions. These questions pertain to personal, medical and financial details. Samples of the questions that may be asked are
- Your name, current address, employment status
- The number of members in your family
- Whether you have health insurance currently and what is your plan
- Do you have any history of family illness or any other lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart conditions?
- Do you or anybody else in your family smoke
- Have you had any operations before?
- Have any of your members suffered from any critical illness such as cancer
All questionnaires will address these questions. Dependent upon the answers, the company may choose to provide the cover. They would also ask the person to go in for a medical check up to clarify the answers that you might have given. Its important that as a customer, you must ask for exclusions and inclusions in the policy as well as any deductibles that may be there.
One can also go online and ask for health Insurance Quotes from various companies. There are many sites, which offer these services. You can even compare the quotes online.
After you have got the quotes and have made a comparison, you can apply for the cover. This will be dependent upon the benefits, exclusions, inclusions and the deductibles in the health insurance cover.
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