Healthcare insurance costs are always increasing. If you need assistance paying for your healthcare bills due to inadequate insurance coverage or financial hardship, you are not alone. Thankfully, health insurance assistance is available to help a large variety of consumers pay their medical bills and receive the prescription medication they need.
Both U.S. federal and state government agencies are aware of the rising costs of health insurance in modern times. If you meet specific requirement criteria, however, you might get health insurance at lower prices or even no cost at all.
Affordable Healthcare Insurance Options Available for You Now
People need healthcare insurance despite it’s rising costs. Fortunately, assistance in the form of low-cost or other affordable options is available. Continue reading to learn about the following types of health care assistance and life insurance plans and programs:
1. General types of healthcare assistance.
2. Affordable Care Insurance plans (do I qualify for government money?).
3. Cigna medical policy and Humana life insurance.
4. Short term medical insurance.
5. Medicare and Medicaid.
6. AARP health insurance discounts and options.
7. Dental and vision insurance help.
When you are struggling to pay for the costs of healthcare, certain government-funded programs might be available to help. Some programs offer discounts on healthcare, while others pay for the entire costs of all necessary medical expenses.
Government health insurance assistance takes multiple forms. Such forms include subsidies, medical grants and discounted insurance programs. Subsidies automatically reduce the price of your insurance premiums. The federally facilitated Health Insurance Marketplace provides options to compare plan prices and apply for affordable options all year long.
Medical grants might also be available to qualified applicants with no requirements for repayment necessary. Discount and insurance assistance programs are also available to income and age-eligible applicants. Group insurance is yet another option. This type of insurance is usually provided through an employer or available by joining a spouse’s plan. Rates tend to be lower on group insurance plans due to the number of consumers enrolled, and, because employers pay for part of the premium costs.
Affordable Care Insurance plans are available on the healthcare.gov website. Plans are available in four different levels. These four levels are referred to as Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. Each plan has different requirements and coverage benefits as follows:
Bronze (costs are split 60/40 with enrollees paying 40% of all costs; Bronze premiums are affordable but co-payments and additional expenses are higher; excellent plan for enrollees who do not need frequent coverage).
Silver (costs are split 70/30 with enrollees paying 30% of all costs; Silver premiums, co-payments and additional expenses are fairly balanced, albeit premium prices are higher than those in bronze plans; excellent plan for enrollees who need occasional coverage throughout the year).
Gold (costs are split 80/20 with enrollees paying 20% of all costs; Gold premiums are expensive but co-payments and additional expenses are low; excellent plan for enrollees who need significant coverage each year).
Platinum (costs are split 90/10 with enrollees paying 10% of all costs; Platinum premium prices are the highest of all Affordable Care Insurance plans; excellent plan for enrollees with serious medical issues who need constant coverage).
Do you qualify for government healthcare money or other assistance? Qualifying criteria is based on your age, household income, location (state and region) and tobacco use. Catastrophic Plan options are also available to qualified applicants. These plans are not technically considered health insurance plans but do provide certain coverage in the event of qualified emergency situations.
Cigna health insurance plans are popular because of their availability for individuals, families and through the government sponsored Medicare program. Cigna provides Medicare Advantage, Part D prescription drug plans and Medicare supplement insurance.
The Cigna medical policy website page proves all the information you need to know about the offerings and plans Cigna provides. This includes group coverage plans for employers.
Companies with specifically larger employee numbers are required by law to offer group insurance healthcare options to their workers. Plans must cover employees and qualified children up to twenty-six years of age. Spousal coverage is not required by law but is still commonly offered in family plans. Group plans might save you money on your premiums because employers are also required to pay for some of the premium costs.
Humana life insurance policies are also made available in “group” form. Basic Term and Supplemental Term life insurance plans offer unique features when provided as group policies. Basic Term policies allow employees to select from a wide variety of coverage options form themselves, their spouse and dependent children.
Supplemental Term policies are optional solutions to provide additional peace-of-mind beyond the scope of what Basic Term plans can offer. These optional plans are paid for in-full by employees but provide the extra protection you and your family need in the event of your death.
Short-term medical insurance policies are designed to temporarily bridge the gap between coverage periods and enrollment deadlines. Short-term policies are highly beneficial for enrollees who have been unexpectedly terminated from their jobs from which they previously received their health insurance. Signing up for new healthcare plans sometimes require waiting periods as well.
Short-term medical insurance gives you the coverage you need when waiting for your new, full-time healthcare plan to take effect. Please note: This type of healthcare coverage is not subject to the rules and guidelines as set forth in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Thorough comparison-shopping and research are recommended when selecting your short-time medical insurance coverage provider.
Medicare and Medicaid are the two primary healthcare plans sponsored by the U.S. federal government. Medicare is available to qualified enrollees who are sixty-five years of age or older or who suffer from specific serious disabilities. Medicaid is available to those experiencing significant financial hardships and/or who also have qualifying serious disabilities.
The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) also functions as part of Medicaid but also as its own program. CHIP provides healthcare to children who live in households where income and other qualification requirements are met.
The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is an excellent resource for finding healthcare at discounted rates for qualified applicants. AARP has a long history of serving U.S. senior citizens in multiple ways. AARP is connected with several high-quality health insurance providers to provide low-cost healthcare options to qualified AARP members.
Dental and vision expenses are not typically covered by standard healthcare plans. While this makes little sense from the perspective of many patients, it is still a fact. Fortunately, discount plans are available to help reduce the costs of dental and vision-related expenses.
Dental savings plans and vision discount plans through AETNA and Humana are examples of two such options. Medicaid pays for some dental and vision expenses as well. If you need dental or vision care but cannot afford the cost, discuss your options with a representative from your healthcare provider today.
