The IRS Deductions Blog

Posts Tagged ‘high deductible plan hsa’

Question: What is the point of a health insurance plan if you never met your deductible?

I am 22 and applying for my first health insurance. I do not need much medical services, and want a low affordable premium. However, when I look at sites such as Blue Cross, it seems that low premiums go with high deductibles. I don’t think I would ever meet the yearly deductible, and thus, cannot get any health services covered. So what is the point of such a plan? Thanks.

Answer: That’s a fair question and, to be honest, shows how “differently” people consider health insurance from, say auto or fire insurance. Here’s the question for you to consider:

Do you want health “insurance,” or “health care financing?”

“Insurance” helps you pay for unforeseen expenses that you can’t handle yourself (like, say, that $87,000 hospital/surgical bill after the car wreck, etc.). “Health care financing,” like anything else you usually finance, lets you “make payments” to buy things that you don’t want to pay for all at once (like, say, that $2300 big screen HDTV).

Here’s a few tips:
1. Buy a plan with a big deductible ($2,500 – 5,000) to keep your cost down. REMEMBER: even with a big deductible you can still find plans with the things you like: doctor and drug copays.
2. Stick with the “brand name” companies, like Blue Cross, Humana, Aetna, etc. There are a lot of other plans that “look good” but, if or when you have that big claim, they’ll vanish like an honest politician.
3. Talk to a broker who specializes. Visit NAHU.org (see below) to find one near you. NAHU is the professional association of brokers like me who specialize in health insurance.
4. Get you own quotes online. Visit my site (below) or go to Norvax.com to get prices.

Hope this helps a bit!

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Grants, resolutions top School Board agenda

A number of grants and resolutions forwarded from the St. Tammany Parish School Board Committee as a Whole for Administration and Business Affairs last Thursday were approved at the regular meeting of School Board Thursday night.

High Deductible Health Plan Comparison

Question: medical bill from high deductible plan in collections?

I have a $6000+ medical bill with a high deductible plan. The amount that I needed to pay to the dr was approx $2000 in order to meet the deductible. I confirmed with the insurance co that they sent a writ advising that they should only be charging the $2000. The dr office did not seem to understand the concept of the high deductible plan at all. I was advised that their billing of the insurance company was simply a courtesy and that 6000 was due. I pretty much just got tired of arguing with them and asked to put it on a payment plan just to be sure that it did not get sent to collections. They advised me that a payment plan had been set up. I then received another $6000 bill from them. I went ahead and sent a $200 payment from my HSA and notated on the bill that I had set up a payment plan. They proceeded to charge the $200 and then sent the $6000 bill to collections. I have no intention of paying any more than the 2000 I genuinely owe. Do I have any recourse here?

Answer: The doctor’s office will be charging YOU in full, if they don’t get paid by your insurance.

You need to stop arguing with the doctor, and go ask your INSURANCE company why they didn’t pay the $4,000.

You have NO recourse with the doctor’s office – legally, YOU are on the hook for all medical procedures that you had. The collection agency will take this to court and win, and garnish your wages and seize your assets, to get paid.

Your beef is with the insurance company. WHY didn’t they pay? Whose fault is it?

The doctor has NO obligation to even bill the insurance company for ANYTHING. Ultimately, it’s up to YOU to make sure everyone does what they’re supposed to do, in a timely manner.

Items on Amazon Right Now for High Deductible Plan Hsa:

City considers switch to HSA plan

City council’s finance committee is considering switching to a health savings account plan for all city employees.

HSA Plans – The mysterious High Deductible Health Plan