Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Alternatives To Health Insurance For Those Without Coverage

By Shawna Trujillo


A job loss or employer cutback can result in the loss of insurance coverage as well. The birth of a critically ill child may cause rates to go so high as to make coverage something the family can no longer afford. You can get help with medical expenses, however, with alternatives to health insurance.

There are options you can explore when you find you can no longer get or afford a regular policy. Costs and quality varies with the different options. Research well to discover what is available and at what price in order to get the best option. If you omit coverage for some things, such as maternity coverage, can help you save money. Just be sure it is something you know you won't need in the future.

For the millions of Americans who are either uninsured or under-insured, medical care is not an option at times. Many go without needed medical care just because they can't afford it. Having other means of paying for medical care is essential for these people. Affordable health care is a difficult situation in America, due to rising healthcare costs, more stringent qualifying regulations, the issue of preexisting conditions, and expensive or even nonexistent coverage.

Direct-care medical homes, or medical sharing programs, as they are sometimes called, is one option in getting affordable care. With this program, the person or family pays a set fee every month and receives certain covered standard medical services. This small monthly fee allows them unrestricted access to routine medical services, such as blood tests, women's and pediatric services, and ongoing treatment of chronic illnesses.

With medical sharing programs, no co-pay is required. The low monthly fee that is required leaves enough money to get coverage for catastrophic events and hospitalizations. A policy with a high deductible is possible, since routine medical care will be included under the plan. This keeps the premiums at a low price. This means both insurance and the monthly fee is affordable.

Healthcare cooperatives work much as any other cooperative. The members pool their resources and either provide free services to their members, or pool their funds and obtain low-cost coverage for the members. Co-ops can be consumer based, producer or provider based, or employee owned. Each type co-op provides discounts in a different way, but the pooling of resources means a lower-cost alternative. Insurance for things not covered by the co-op is a good idea.

Most states have programs funded by both state and federal agencies to provide medical assistance to those with very low incomes. Some are free clinics, which is usually provided for particular conditions such as AIDA, or certain groups of people, like the homeless. There are also services that can be provided to those with below poverty levels, usually not entirely free, but with only a very low fee.

For the elderly, there is Medicare services that help with some expenses. In addition, there is Medicaid, a combined state and federal program, that provides medical assistance to the extremely poor. The income and assets must fall within certain limits. Each state has unique regulations about qualification and what is covered. The person needs to check with their state's Medicaid department to see if they qualify.




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