When shopping for health insurances, it’s human nature for us to look for the most affordable quote. Making a better financial decision does not necessarily mean getting the cheapest quote. It means striking a balance between getting the coverage you need at the best price available. Read along and discover tips and tricks to lessen your family’s health coverage costs.
Focus on your Family’s Health
This may sound simple, but believe it or not, your family’s overall health plays an important role in determining the cost of your health insurance. This is because insurance providers based on your family’s health status. Investing a couple of dollars for your family’s health will definitely go a long way. You should also lessen your bad habits such as smoking and drinking. Instead, replace it with healthier ones such as living a more active lifestyle.
Check your co-insurance ratio
Co-insurance ratio is the amount that you have to pay once your deductible has been met. 80/20 is the most common ratio that insurance companies provide. This simply means that the insurance company pays 80% of the medical expenses while you, on the other hand, pay 20%. This, of course, will be put into action once you cover your deductible cost.
Tweaking your co-insurance ratio and increasing your payment percentage will technically lower your monthly premium. Cost vs. risk should be weighed carefully at this point.
Pair your insurance with an HSA
An HSA or health savings account is yet another helpful factor in lowering your family’s health insurance cost. This will roll all the pre-tax contributions to your health plan annually. Because of this you won’t have to think about federal taxes.
Check your insurance regularly
Your family’s situation changes from time to time. Because of that, you should pay extra attention to your health insurance. This will spare you from missing out any savings available to your family. You should also ensure that you’re taking advantage of your coverage.
Make it a habit to see your doctor annually for a general check-up. You kids should see their pediatricians as well. If you won’t follow this, you may be wasting your insurance coverage.
Consider the generics
Health costs don’t stop with medical bills. All medicines purchased should also be considered. Depending on your coverage, you may need to find generic versions of expensive medicines. Generic medicines are equally effective as their branded counterparts. These are FDA approved making them safe for consumption.
With the current state of the economy, it’s not unusual for households to find creative ways of saving. But in our effort to save, we should not also forget the importance of good health and good insurance coverage. Having an insurance policy does not give you the license to get sick but is something you could rely on just in case you are faced with a family emergency.
This is a guest post by Suzzane Edwards for www.needingadvice.co.uk/key-person-insurance-guide. For more information please click here.