Low Cost Medical Insurance – Health Savings Account – Flex Spending Account
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Finding low cost medical insurance is easy once you know the many types of medical insurance coverage that is available. You can start by picking a medical or health insurance site that will set you up with an agent to assist with picking out your plan. Not every plan works for everyone, so be sure to tell your agent your pre-existing medical conditions. Depending upon your current or pre-existing medical conditions, this will be a starting point from which your agent will start to search for a plan that works best for you.
Every medical insurance plan is different. There are health discount cards and many plans to choose from for everyone. There are plans for a family, a group, an individual, the self employed, student health plans, child-only policies, and senior citizens.
Next you'll want to decide on which type of policy to choose from. You have the option to choose from an HMO plan, a PPO plan, Flex Spending Account, or a Health Savings Account. In order to decide which is best, you'll first need to educate yourself on what each of these plans are about separating the pro's from the con's.
Suggestion Option #1 – Health Savings Account
A Health Savings Account is a great idea to get through your employer. It's kind of like a tax deferred 401K retirement plan savings account, that is transferrable wherever you go. Ofcourse, it can only be transferred to another Health Savings Account when you move onto another employer. The money you put into the account is contributed on a tax preferred basic, and any early withdrawals receive penalties. The good news is, if the money is withdrawn for qualified medical expenses, then they are tax free. The potential bad news is the custodial fees could be high. You don't want to be paying fees higher than the amount of interest you're earning on your account.
Suggested Option #2 – Flex Spending Account
A Flex Spending Account is a little different. It's an account that reimburses you for expenses that your regular health insurance plan will not cover. This plan allows you to pay for medical bills on a pre-tax basis. The good news here is you can lower your taxable income and increase your spendable income. Expenses that are eligible for reimbursement by the Internal Revenue Service are the only expenses that a Flexible Spending Account will cover. To figure this out, just look at your health plan booklet. Whatever expenses are not covered by your health care plan, is usually what the FSA will cover. Another thing to keep in mind is, calculate your out-of-pocket medical expense in advance. If you over calculate and put more money in this type of an account than you plan on spending, then you lose it 3 months after the calendar year is over.
Guaranteed ways to get low cost medical insurance
Like most types of insurance, paying a higher deductible will give you the lower insurance rate. If you're fairly healthy and are doing all the right things such as eating healthy, exercising, going for regular check-ups, this shows you're motivated to stay healthy. If you're reasonably healthy, then you only should get the health coverage that you need. So many people make the mistake of over insuring by purchasing health insurance coverage that they don't need. Why pay for all the bells and whistles insurance when you only need the basics?
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