UNINSURABLE ? |
| Date Added: March 09, 2010 05:42:11 AM |
| Author: Arturo Meneses |
| Category: Business & Economy: Finance and Investment |
| Are you like millions of Americans uninsurable by classical major medical health insurance standards and / or costs, are you looking for Affordable Health Insurance? If this is your case, you should know that there are Florida Health Insurance options for you, although not major medical in the majority of cases, but alternatives that can provide you with a satisfactory option. If you are in this group and have some medical background that hinders underwriting and body build which is above the accepted standards you should fist try some of the following advices. First of all, like most of us, you’re probably looking for the best Florida Health Insurance coverage your money can buy and that is seriously limited when finances and underwriting are considered. If you’re medical condition is grave, than you probably have three options which may be limited by the state you live in and your work history; let’s take a look at what you should seek initially. HIPPA plans These are guaranteed issue major medical health insurance plans, but in order to qualify you have to meet the following pre-requisites: 1. You must not have any other health insurance coverage (or it will be involuntarily terminated soon – for example: the end of your 18 months under COBRA coverage is approaching soon). 2. You have been insured by creditable coverage (creditable coverage being defined as basically having a full comprehensive major medical policy and not just a plan that is supplemental in nature or insures only against accident, disability, or liability) for the last 18 months or more with no lapse of coverage of more than 63 days. 3. Your most recent coverage was under a group health plan, a governmental plan, or a church plan; or under an individual plan that terminated due to: the insurer’s insolvency, the insurer’s discontinuance of all its individual coverage in Florida; or the fact that you no longer live in Florida service area of your prior insurer’s service area. 4. Your most recent coverage was not terminated due to nonpayment of premiums, fraud, or intentional misrepresentations. 5. You are not eligible under a conversion plan, a group health plan, Medicare, or Medicaid. 6. You accepted and exhausted any group continuation of coverage (including COBRA) that was offered to you. In my experience, most customers find it difficult to match “all the requirements”which is a condition to be eligible. But if you do, the premiums are high, sometimes over the available budget. COBRA If you are currently employed and your employer offers health insurance than this option is available if you are laid off or are opting for another job. Cobra also has some conditions which should be met and are as follows: -You are currently or were recently (within 60 days of leaving the workplace) employed by a company that had more than 20 employees and offered group health insurance at the time of the qualifying event, which may include: • Termination of employment (death, retirement, dismissal, resignation) • Reduction of working hours • Divorce (spouse) • Loss of "dependent" status (child) Though an excellent option if you can afford it, it also has a 18 month limitation period (36 in some circumstances). Being Eligible for COBRA You may only be eligible for a COBRA plan if you are currently or were recently (within 60 days of leaving the workplace) employed by a company that had more than 20 employees and offered group health insurance at the time of the qualifying event. Qualifying events are instances where group health care plans are terminated, qualifying individuals for COBRA plans. These events include: • Termination of employment (death, retirement, dismissal, resignation) • Reduction of working hours • Divorce (spouse) • Loss of "dependent" status (child) While COBRA is great for some individuals, there are certain drawbacks to these medical plans, such as cost. If your health needs match with those that COBRA offers, and you are willing to pay a high price, COBRA may be right for you. HIGH RISK HEALTH INSURANCE POOLS These are guaranteed issue major health insurance plans offered by many but not all states and are subject to specific rules, regulations and limitations of each issuer and are not cheap. MEDICAID This is state and federal subsidized health insurance assistance plan only available to individuals who meet stringent income levels and as such usually not an option for most Americans. Considering all the hurdles with the aforementioned options, the panorama is not very optimistic, but read on. THE SOLUTION At this point and after you have researched and discarded most of the options I mentioned, the best way to obtain Florida Health Insurance is to match two alternatives, which although not major medical, combined should provide a reasonable alternative. Get in touch with your agent and ask him to offer you a guaranteed issued accident policy by a trustworthy company plus a limited benefit guaranteed issue medical policy and “voila” you have an affordable alternative. Arturo Meneses is the author of this article on Individual Health Insurance. Find more information about Affordable Orlando health Insurance here. |