As expensive as maintaining a health insurance policy may be, not buying one may be costlier. One serious illness or accident which comes unannounced can wash out your life savings. Even young, healthy people need insurance, because illness or accident is unpredictable and often creates heavy debt.
Policyholders are more likely to have regular checkups and receive timely medical treatment, sometimes preventing medical emergencies. The uninsured are more likely to postpone medical treatment until their health has deteriorated and an emergency forces them into care. Once they see a doctor, he or she may prescribe medication the patient can't afford. The condition may linger with inadequate treatment. The uninsured may even find themselves unemployed in an emergency health crisis, since employers who don't provide health insurance rarely provide long-term disability leave.
For those in less dire straits, healthcare may be ignored or not fully available due to several common circumstances. For example, students may not be covered because their school doesn't sponsor health insurance or because their school is in a region where networks of health maintenance organizations (HMOs) or preferred-provider organizations (PPOs) do not exist. Many temporary situations may result in lapsed coverage, including going to school away from home (and parental coverage), being on semester break, and searching for employment.
However, temporary health insurance is also available for periods between two permanent health insurance plans. Such insurance plans cover only major medical expenses for a period from 30 days to 365 days and usually don't require a medical exam, making them easier to get than long-term individual policies. These plans have the disadvantage of being expensive and lacking coverage for pre-existing ailments and preventive care.
In the U.S., typically people must choose between individual or group insurance plans. Group plans offered by employers to employees and their dependents are the most common way to get insured. Group health insurance can also be purchased through trade unions, professional organizations, trade associations, and so on.
Group plans are more common for good reason. First and foremost, they're simply less expensive than individual insurance plans. Employers may pay premiums in full or offer before-tax employee deductions. Individuals under group plans are often covered irrespective of the health status or pre-existing conditions and without proof of insurability. Larger companies often give employees some choice among several plans; employees may resent their group insurance coverage, though, if a single cost-saving mandatory plan gives them poor care and few options.
Self-employed individuals or employees of very small employers cannot take advantage of group insurance. Such individuals opt for individual medical insurance policy. Individuals opting for this type of health insurance may choose their insurance provider, something group policyholders cannot do. They can decide on the insurance plan that they would like to buy from the wide range available depending on workplace risk, family size, age, health, the coverage required, and the ability to pay.
Individual health insurance plans are at a disadvantage because the applicants' health history and status determine the availability and cost of the policy. Many applicants may be declared uninsurable or have certain benefits excluded from their policy. Thus, individual health insurance plans offer limited benefits.
