Posted on Thu, Dec 17, 2009
In America, the majority of people have health insurance coverage through their
employer. Of all residents in the United States, it is estimated that 60 percent are covered by their employer's health plan, 27 percent are covered by government funded health insurance programs, and the other 13 percent are left to find their own coverage. While this may not seem to be all that big a deal, if you or a member of your family is considered by the insurance companies to be ‘high risk' then you may find it near impossible to get quality health care coverage.
The reason is simple: money. Health insurance companies will not offer coverage to those who are high risk and may have a pre-existing condition because they know that the person will more than likely spend a good deal of money on medical expenses. On the other hand, if a person is low risk, then it stands to reason that they will not require much medical attention and that means more dollars to the insurance company's bottom line. So if you are high risk, what can you do?
Depending on the state in which you live, it may be possible for you to qualify for coverage under what is known as a high-risk pool. These are typically state run programs and are reserved for those who cannot obtain coverage from a private insurance company. But just because it is state run don't expect to pay less. People who are categorized in the high-risk pool will normally pay out much more than they would if they were able to get coverage from a private insurer.
There are presently 34 states that have such programs though many are considered to be poorly run and the coverage's are not always the best. Many states cite poor organization and underfunding to be the main reasons as to the ineffectiveness of such programs. However, if you fall in the high-risk category and can't get adequate health care coverage elsewhere, it may be your only option.
More Information:
Contact us at BestHealthcareRates.com as we do have Guaranteed Issue solutions for high risk individuals.
Posted on Wed, Dec 02, 2009
It's bad enough losing a job with the economy as bad as it is. But losing affordable medical insurance is at least as big a worry for millions of Americans.
Now those worries are likely to worsen. Starting this week, $25 billion in special federal subsidies to defray 65 percent of the costs for people to keep buying health coverage through their ex-employers are expiring.
As part of the federal stimulus package, the nine-month subsidies made available to the unemployed starting in March have run out for those who collected them from the get-go.
People who lose their jobs from after the end of this month won't be eligible for the subsidy. Congress isn't likely to extend the program either, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Families USA says the COBRA subsidies have averaged $722 per month per family. Without them, family COBRA premiums will run an average of $1,111 per month, or 83 percent of the average monthly unemployment checks. The group is pushing for an extension of the subsidies.
Posted on Thu, Oct 30, 2008
BestHealthcareRates.com has helped thousands of previously uninsured Americans find quality affordable health insurance coverage. For people who cannot afford medical insurance coverage or who don’t qualify, we can put them in touch with non-profit groups like the Foundation for Health Insurance Coverage Education to help find government-sponsored health insurance solutions.