Florida Health Insurance - Making the best choice for your family
How can you choose Florida Health Insurance plans that are right for you? Choosing between plans is not as easy as it once was. Although there is no one “best” plan, there are some Florida health insurance plans that will be better than others for you and your family’s medical needs. Plans differ, both in how much you have to pay and how easy it is to get the services you need.
Almost all Florida Health Insurance plans today have ways to reduce the costs and reduce the use of it. If you get Florida health insurance through your work, you can start by checking with their benefits office to answers any questions you may have. You can also call the Florida health insurance plans directly to ask questions.
Florida health insurance plans are usually described as either indemnity (fee-for-service) or managed care. These types of plans differ in important ways. With any Florida Health insurance plan, however, there is a basic premium, which is how much you or your employer pay, usually monthly, to buy the coverage. In addition, there are often other payments you must make, which will vary by plan. In considering any Florida health insurance plan, you should try to figure out its total cost to you and your family, especially if someone in the family has a chronic or serious medical condition.
With an indemnity plan (sometimes called fee-for-service), you can use any medical provider (such as a doctor and hospital). You or they send the bill to the Florida health insurance company, which pays part of it. Usually, you have a deductible—such as $200—to pay each year before the insurer starts paying. Once you meet the deductible, most indemnity plans pay a percentage of what they consider the “usual and customary” charge for covered services. The insurer generally pays eighty percent of the usual and customary costs and you pay the other twenty percent.
There are basically three types of Florida health insurance managed care plans: PPOs, HMOs and POS plans.
Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) is a form of managed care closest to an indemnity plan. If you go to a doctor within the PPO network, you will pay a copayment (a set amount you pay for certain services—say $10 for a doctor or $5 for a prescription). If you choose to go outside the network, you will have to meet the deductible and pay coinsurance based on higher charges.
HMOs offer members a range of benefits, including preventive care, for a set monthly fee. There are many kinds of HMOs. HMOs will give you a list of doctors from which to choose a primary care doctor. This doctor coordinates your care, which means that generally you must contact him or her to be referred to a specialist. With some HMOs, you will pay nothing when you visit doctors. With other HMOs there may be a copayment.
Point of Service plans allow you to decide whether to use a network or non-network provider at the time care is needed. If you use a non-network provider, the plan may only pay fifty to eighty percent of your expenses and you may be responsible for paying a deductible and co-insurance charges.
Be sure to research all the Florida health insurance companies and options available and get as much information as possible about financial rates and what they provide, before you make a final decision.