Affordable Health Insurance

An individual health insurance cover, simply stated, is an agreement between you and the insurance firm, aimed at protecting you against any financial constraints on account of a medical emergency. The one pertinent question you need to ask yourself is -what are the factors to be analyzed before deciding on an individual health insurance policy?

It is indeed a fact that medical and preventive sciences have made rapid advancements in today’s world. Nonetheless, it would be prudent to arm yourself with the best individual health insurance cover to protect yourself against any unforeseen illness. Indeed, America’s best health insurance companies are vying with one another in putting together some of the most imaginative individual health insurance policies designed to overcome any medical contingency. If you are unemployed, or self-employed, an individual health insurance policy is the right choice.

Consult with your insurance company if you can have your individual health insurance policy incorporated in its group policy. You may be paying a higher rate but the terms would be more advantageous than if you had to buy your own individual health insurance policy. If you are married, find out if your spouse’s employer is willing to include you in its group policy. If you are left with no option, then it is wise to buy an individual health insurance policy. Even though the insurance cover may be limited and the rates high, you would still be ensuring protection for yourself or your family against financial problems if you are suddenly confronted with a serious illness or medical emergency. Search for a good health insurance professional to help you with the best individual health insurance policy that offers you good value for money.

You have plenty of choices while selecting individual health insurance plans – The PPO Plan or the Preferred Provider Organization, the HMO Plan or the Health Maintenance Organization, the HDHP or the High Deductible Health Insurance and HAS or the Health Savings Accounts Qualified High Deductible Plan.

When considering individual health insurance plans a worthwhile option may be a health savings account plan which has few unique benefits. With individual health insurance plans, you can trade lower deductible health insurance for a plan that has a higher deductible. This will help you save money each month by lowering your premium. Besides the lower cost, higher deductible health savings account plan also has the added benefit of a tax favored savings account. Yet another interesting aspect of these individual health insurance plans is that the money you save rolls over year after year.

Even if you are already covered by your employer’s insurance scheme, you may still need to get additional coverage through an individual health insurance plan. This becomes necessary because employer-sponsored programs often fall short of individual needs. Extensive coverage for self and family can be achieved through a separate individual health insurance plan.

Individual health insurance plans are of two types: – Indemnity plans – Managed care plans. Indemnity plans are costlier but best suited for those who have particular health issues and need to be treated by specific doctors. Managed care plans cost less because you will be visiting a doctor or a hospital that is provided under the plan. If the treatment requires you to visit a specialist, you will need special permission from the insurance service provider. This plan is best suited for individuals without specific health problems, and wanting to pay less.

Anthem Blue Cross Life and Health Insurance Company is responding to the national health care crisis by offering two new affordable health plans for California residents. The two new plans will be rolled out in early 2010, providing low-cost insurance alternatives for the many Californians who either don’t have insurance or who have health insurance plans that they are struggling to afford.

The first of Anthem’s new health insurance plans – CoreGuard – will become available on January 1, 2010. CoreGuard is a PPO plan that provides tax deductible options and prescription drug coverage. Most importantly for many California residents: the monthly premiums for CoreGuard will start at “prices to meet just about every budget,” noted one California health insurance agent.

As an example of the low-cost rates for the CoreGuard plan, the monthly premium for a male under the age of 40 is expected to be about per month. However, as with most healthcare plans, participants will need to meet a deductible in order to receive coverage. Participants can select from a wide range of annual deductible amount and rate combinations to select the one that best for their budgets and healthcare needs.

The second of Anthem’s new affordable California health insurance plans is ClearProtection. ClearProtection will launch on February 1, 2010 and is designed to provide a wide range of benefits, but still offer first-dollar coverage. A male under the age of 40 will have a monthly deductible of about . ClearProtection is being touted as the PPO health insurance plan with the lowest rates of all of the Anthem PPO health insurance plans.

Blue Cross of California has one of the largest networks of healthcare providers throughout the state of California, which includes more than 50,000 doctors and almost 400 hospitals accepting PPO health insurance. Anthem’s health insurance plans also travel with participants across the country, helping to ensure that even if California plan holders leave the state, they will still be covered.

In addition to the basic healthcare coverage provided by these two new Anthem PPO plans, participants can also select from optional coverage for healthcare needs such as dental and term life.

Anthem’s NextRX delivers prescription medications to California residents through the mail

The two new health insurance programs from Anthem may be the newest additions to Anthem’s health care program line-up, but they fall into line with a whole host of helpful healthcare services offered to California residents by Anthem.

The NextRX program is Anthem’s preferred mail service pharmacy, which is available to Anthem members who taken maintenance medications on a regular basis. Many of the medications that qualify as maintenance medications include drugs that are used to treat heart disease, diabetes, depression, allergies, and even oral contraceptives.

When California residents enroll in the NextRX program by December 31, 2009, Anthem will waive the first co-pay for each generic prescription that participants transfer to NextRX.

Anthem also offers state health programs

In addition to the two new affordable health insurance plans offered by Anthem for California residents, Anthem also offers California state health programs, including Medi-Cal, Healthy Families, MRMIP, AIM, CMSP, and Telemedicine. Here’s an overview of each of these different California healthcare programs:

Medi-Cal is California’s Medicaid Program, which is available at no cost for individuals and families who meet certain low-income or other qualifications.

The Healthy Families Program is a low-cost managed care coverage program for children who live in households with financial situations that make them ineligible for the Medi-Cal Program.

The MRMIP program (California Major Risk Medical Insurance Program) is a health insurance plan that is available for Californians who cannot obtain health insurance coverage in the individual health insurance market.

AIM is the low-cost manage care coverage available for infants and their mothers who have family incomes too high for Medi-Cal coverage.

CMSP is a program that provides medical, dental, and vision services for eligible low-income adults who live primarily in one of 34 rural communities who are also not eligible for the Medi-Cal program.

Finally, the Anthem Blue Cross Telemedicine Program provides access to specialized healthcare for rural Californians.

For more information about Anthem’s CoreGuard and ClearProtection PPO health insurance plans, consumers should speak with a health insurance specialist who can explain the specific details of each different coverage option and type of plan. Also, in addition to Anthem’s health insurance plans, California residents can select their health insurance plans from a wide variety of other health insurance carriers that service the state. A California health insurance specialist can help California residents to sift through all of the available health insurance options to find the right plan for their specific healthcare needs.