INCOME PROTECTION INSURANCE| WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW IN 2019

INCOME PROTECTION INSURANCE | HOW CAN YOU PROTECT YOUR INCOME

Insurance is a way of ensuring risk management and possible ways of curbing risk to save finance and more also serves as an instrument to save you for unforeseen events either long or short term. Your income is what actually should be preserve in order to meet your needs both present and future or even after death for your beneficiary/nominee. Income protection Insurance is an insurance policy that covers you for your inability to work, this policy does not over you after death but a separate policy like the life insurance policy covers you for death.

Income protection insurance is a policy that pays benefits to policyholders who are unable to work due to the accident or illness, this policy was formerly called the Permanent Health Insurance (PHI). There are certain concepts we need to understand in the income protection insurance and these concepts will best help us identify how well we can save and protect our finance. We need to understand how this concepts of income protection insurance works and then we should also know what we really want out of it. These concepts may include:

1)    Incapacity

2)    Benefit Limits

3)    Deferred Period

4)    Proportionate Benefit

5)    Free Limit

1 Incapacity: Incapacity here means inability or been incapacitated and there are certain reasons why incapacity is regarded as one of the concepts of income protection insurance:

A  Activities of Daily Living( ADL): This policy defines your functions and duties so that when you are unable to perform these functions or duties due to illness or accident it can protect you from that.

B  Any Occupation: This is when the policyholder is unable to perform any occupation at all due to illness or accident

C  Suited Occupation: This is when the policyholder is unable to perform duties assigned to them due to illness or accident.

D  Own occupation: The policy covers a policyholder if he/she is unable to perform their own occupation and definitely not occupied by another job.

2 Benefit Limits: There are usually a stipulated percentage that is been payable to the policyholder from its normal earnings. In some cases it is at about 70% but could be lesser or higher

3 Deferred Period: This is the period between a valid claim and when a commencement of benefits is payable and should be payable.

4 Proportionate Benefit: This is to encourage the policyholder to return to their work and in most cases decides to offer reduced benefit if the policyholder decides to take up a lower paying job after recovering from illness.

5 Free Limit: The income Protection Insurance will be valid only if the policyholder lives in a particular area that is stipulated in the policy. Most policies allows for temporary residence outside areas such as UK, USA, and Western Europe.

TYPES OF INCOME PROTECTION INSURANCE

There are basically three types of IPI and they are:

1 Agreed Value

2 Indemnity Value

3 Loss of Earnings

1 Agreed Value: This type of Income protection Insurance is usually proven upon taking up the policy. There is a fixed amount you will receive regardless of the increase or decrease in your income. The premium you pay for in this type of policy can be much higher by 20-25%  than the indemnity value which we are going to discuss next. 

In this policy, you can summit a proof of income through an application before or after your policy begins and it assures you of a monthly benefit thus if you cannot provide a proof of your income application before or at the period of your claim, the amount of the monthly payment that would be relieved may likely reduce.

2 Indemnity Value: In this type of income protection Insurance, the payment of your benefit is based on your declaration at the initial time of taking up the policy that is you will be asked to declare your salary when taking up the policy and the benefit will be paid on that which you have declared. The amount of benefit paid to you by the insurance company will be 75% lesser of your pre-disability income or the amount insured in your policy.

Pre-disability income here means the income in you earned over the last 12 months in a specific period of time. Under this kind of policy, financial checks are mostly required and essential when you file out a claim and if this claim was ensured by you, you could reduce the amount of benefits that is to be paid if you have recently earned less before the policy began.

3 Loss of Earnings: This type of IPI is similar to the indemnity value/protection where the benefits to be received will be based on your actual income rather than the income at the time of making a claim. For example if your salary or earnings is $80,000 a year and you were injured to the extent you decided to take a break off work, your income shortfall will still be $80,000 but if you were still able to work part time, your income might reduce a little by $30,000 which means that your benefit is based on a shortfall of $50,000 rather your actual benefit of $80,000.

INCOME PROTECTION INSURANCE FOR SELF EMPLOYED

Income Protection Insurance for self employed is a policy that guarantees payment if you are unable to work due to an injury or illness. This policy pays a monthly income until you are fit and able to return to your work or for a stipulated period of time usually 12-24 months. The benefit of this IPI for self employed is that:

1 It puts you n a better position to over your expenses, manage debts, and taking care of your loved ones when you are unable to do so.

2 It give you an assurance that things are going to be better by making you think lesser of how you are going to pay your bills, debts and other expenses and make you focus on how to get back to your health position once again.

PREMIUMS OFFERED

When choosing a policy most especially the life insurance policy, there will be an option to choose between a level premium and a stepped premium.

1 Level Premium: This kind of premium is relatively expensive at the beginning of acquisition but consistent.

2 Stepped Premium: This kind of premium increases as you grow older but is cheaper at the beginning unlike the level premium however it is important to consider rising cost over time.

LONG TERM INSURANCE PROTECTION

A long term insurance protection plan usually covers an individual up to the age he/she decides to retire from work. Long term protection also covers serious illness and incidents, strokes and heart attacks or where you are permanently unable to work. This long term plan feature things like:

A It covers you until you retire

B More costly than the short term plan

C The potential payout is usually increased

D Underwritten

E Greater certainty over premium

F More severe conditions are usually covered

SHORT TERM INSURANCE PROTECTION

Short term income protection products are likely underwritten while others which would help to speed up the acceptance and application process are of short term. Unlike the long term plan which is for a longer period of time even up to the death of the policyholder, the short term plan are for short term illness or injuries that causes inability to work. 

This means that even if a consumer had no proper mediation or has seen no doctors for a given period of time, the insurer (insurance company) may still try to exclude the claim incase there are certain pre-existing condition that the insurance company had to beware of. So it is worth it if the consumer knows exactly what they are to be covered for and this should include:

1 Cheap rate: It should be cheaper than the long term plan

2 Unlike the long term which is generally underwritten, the short term is not underwritten

3 More conditions are excluded

4 More flexibility

5 Premium renewal is not certain

IS INCOME PROTECTION INSURANCE WORTH IT??

Having known what Income Protection is all about which was included in this article the definition, types, benefits, premium offered and other tips, you should now be considering if income protection insurance is really worth your money, probably you haven’t thought of that, we would be illustrating some points to show if it is really worth taking up an income protection insurance or not….

Income protection insurance assures you of payment of benefit in the event which you cannot work to earn your normal income due to illness or injuries. Most people prefer insuring their property like their cars against accident but in case you didn’t insure your car (uninsured car) and it eventually gets destroyed, it might take a very long time to recover financially.  

However, have you imagined losing your income for an extended period of time, yea, you might recover financially because your finance could take care of you till you recover from such illness and the money spent could be recovered in a shorter period of time due to your savings, annual leave, family help, or sick leave but what if you were involved in a fatal car accident and couldn’t work for a longer period of time let’s say 6-7 years, it is very much likely that such event could put you in a big financial debt then this is where IPI long term plan would help you recover fast.

Another reason is that Income protection Insurance is worth it is because life could turn to the negative side un expectedly, suppose you are working in a paid position, this policy protects you and your loved ones against any financial impact of losing your income when you get ill or involved in an accident which we do not pry or hope for.

IN QUOTE:

“The Association of British Insurers report announced that protection insurers are helping more families than ever before, while the financial conduct Authority believes that “millions would ideally have some form of income protection”

           The Association of British Insurers

So having outlined some of the benefits of income protection insurance, I can say that the IPI is really worth it especially if you are self employed or in a paid organization.

So what do you think about this? Please kindly use the comment section

CHEAP HEALTH INSURANCE THAT WILL WORK FOR AND SUIT YOUR NEED

There are certain things you should consider when you want to find a cheap Health Insurance Plan.

When you regard a health plan as the cheapest another may regard that same plan as very expensive, so individual needs matters a lot. But in this article we will be discussing some viral factors you need to consider before you final settle for cheap Health Insurance Plan:

1)    First of all understand what you need and can afford it will help you determine the best and cheapest health plan. It won’t be necessary buying the whole coverage when you don’t need them and this will cost you more. A Health Insurance is very important to every individual, family members and the public in general living conditions in today’s world can be very hazardous where sickness of different kinds come up on daily basis. 

     So having a health insurance covers you of infusing unexpected conditions and when such happens considering your low income state, you might not be able to cover your cost but an insurance company under your health premium will do this for you. Finding a cheap Health insurance policies is very good as it is been determined by how your pocket can be able to consistently take this policies, but one thing to note is that when looking for a cheap health insurance, the basics or the basic health insurance plan must be able to cover some essential health benefits and they include:

a.     Dental and vision car for children

b.     Drug prescription.

c.      Mental health services

d.     Laboratory test

e.      Care before and after delivery

f.       Offering services to help you recover from chronic condition or serious injuries

g.     Home care services (optional)

h.     Offering preventive services

i.       Access to emergency room (when such case arises)

     

     Having these above mentioned benefits then you should be to realize what you need in a health insurance plan.

2)    Cost Comparison: One thing you should try to do is to compare the cost of various Health Insurance Company and not only premium prices. I should be very sincere to you on this; you might see a plan that offers a cheap cost but does not cover what you really need and you might also see a very costly plan that covers all you need and more benefits attached to it but if your need and more benefits attached to it but if your needs are just a few 2,3, or 4 then you can see a very cheap health insurance plan. So comparing the cost is very important. 

      

     The next thing you should do is look back at your medical cost, it will be cost utilization, if you have an idea of how medical/health plans are before you opt in for another or a new one then have a fixed amount you are willing to spend based on co-payments deductibles and co-insurance as well as what you can be able to spend on premiums monthly with each plan. You can be cost wise and strategic enough to find the cheapest insurance plan when the total cost isn’t the highest plan or the lowest price.

     So you might just be good financial manager by first of all knowing what you need, comparing cost of different health insurance plan (Take your time, log into various insurance health companies and compare their offers and cost) and have the best part of it.

3)    Ok, let’s say you are ready to and want to purchase a health insurance plan but out of what is available in your pocket, the next is to look for insurance brokers, ask them what is available in different plans of their insurance company, compare the cost and definitely you are not going to end in one because all you doing is shopping. For instance, you want to purchase a car (looking for a cheap car to buy), when you get to the first shop, the seller tells you the cheapest car is for $10,000, take hold of that information and move unto another shop you might luckily see the same car offer for $9,000. 

     This same method applies to shopping for a cheap health insurance plan when you go to an insurance company you ask for their plans and the cost and move on to another insurance company. You can even do this on their website (Link -        List of insurance company) by visiting their website, many websites allow you to get their quotes online this will be helpful to you than just sorting out for an health insurance brokers website.

Tips:visit Health Insurance like ehealthinsurance.com, getinsured.com or healthcare.gov. 

This healthcare insurance companies allows you to get and compare plans/quotes.

4)    Choose the plan that suits your needs: your comparison, you will definitely have a fixed plan in mind that suits your needs or close to your needs while the experience plans covers all your need but have it in mind that health insurance is not only about the monetary aspect but basic services needed to be covered by these health plan just as listed above.

5)    Be careful of short term plans: short term plans are not always the best though they are relatively cheap. Before you conclude on having a short term plan to save yourself of too much expenses consider the fact that these plans may likely have some policies which apply on the expensive plans that means if you have some conditions before the having the plan, the short term plan providers. May not cover up for this and in the case of serious illness you might not have the privilege to renew your plan.

     Find a cheap health insurance plan is something that takes time and a lot of effort too, you just have to be patient and major financial tool to help you achieve this, explore the options and evaluate them to arrive at a conclusion/solution that best suits your need.

SO WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY?? USE THE COMMENT BOX

TIPS: DO YOU KNOW ABOUT  THESE TYPES OF HEALTH INSURANCE? READ:

THE HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANISATION (HMO)


POINT OF SERVICE PLAN (POS)

OTHERS

THE CHANGES IN MEDICARE IN 2019 THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT

Medicare, the government program for seniors that is the basis for the recent “Medicare for All” political rallying cry, has some news of its own to announce for 2019. According to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), several improvements in Medicare take effect this year, with some applying to all recipients and others only to those on a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan.


Types of Medicare Plans

When signing up for Medicare, you must choose between Original Medicare (Parts A and B) and Medicare Advantage, an all-inclusive private plan that provides regular Medicare coverage along with prescription drug coverage and some attractive extras such as dental, vision and hearing. Many who choose Original Medicare also get one of 10 Medigap plans for part or all of the 20% or so that Medicare doesn’t pay, along with a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan.


Medicare Advantage plans typically provide more benefits with lower premiums. The downside is that MA plans require you to choose “in network” providers. If you go outside the plan’s network or geographical area, you may pay more or not have coverage at all. Many Part D drug plans also have a network with similar restrictions. The table below outlines basic coverage provided by each type of Medicare plan.

2019 Premiums and Deductibles
For 2019 the amount you pay per month in premiums, deductibles, coinsurance and copay amounts will change as follows:


Part A Premiums – For the 1% of beneficiaries who pay them, Part A premiums will range from $240 to $437 per month in 2019, an increase of $8 to $15 based on the number of quarters of coverage you had. Your Part A deductible rises $24 to $1,364 in 2019.
Part B Premiums – For most beneficiaries, Part B premiums will be $135.50 in 2019 versus $134 last year. The Part B deductible increases $2 to $185.
Medicare Advantage Premiums – These will fall 6% on average to $28 for 2019. Some MA plans have no premiums (with skimpier coverage), but with MA plans you must also pay your Part B monthly premium and stay within the plan’s network.
Part D Drug Plan Premiums – These are expected to drop about $1.09 in 2019 to an average of $32.50 per month. The maximum allowable Part D deductible will increase from $405 to $415 in 2019.

Improved Medicare Handbook
The Medicare & You handbook, which the agency sends to beneficiaries every year, has been updated for 2019. This year’s edition includes checklists and flowcharts that make it easier to evaluate coverage. In addition, the online Medicare Plan Finder tool has been updated, along with an improved “coverage wizard” designed to help you compare costs and options between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage.

Improved Telemedicine
Telehealth services, which allow patients to connect with medical professionals via video conference, now cover those with end-stage renal disease or undergoing treatment for a stroke. This is important for seniors with mobility problems who may previously have delayed going for treatment for those reasons.

Medicare Therapy Cap Gone
If you have Original Medicare, you will no longer be subject to a cap on outpatient physical, speech and occupational therapy. Historically, Medicare has limited the amount of coverage you had for those types of services.

Part D Doughnut Hole Closing
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) the doughnut hole (gap between initial and catastrophic coverage) was scheduled to close in 2020. Congress moved that closure up to 2019 for brand-name drugs. This means once your drug costs exceed $3,820, you’ll pay just 25% of the cost of brand-name drugs (compared to 35% in 2018) and 37% of the cost of generics while in the doughnut hole. Once your costs exceed $5,100 for the year, you’ll pay just 5% of the cost of all drugs under catastrophic coverage.

More Part D Preferred Pharmacy Plans
Many Part D prescription drug plans will offer lower premiums and copayments if you agree to use a pharmacy in the plan’s network. Otherwise, you may pay a lot more. Before signing up for a Part D plan, find out if it includes preferred pharmacies and if your favorite drugstore is in the network.

New Part D Pain Management Policies
Beginning in 2019 Medicare restricts initial opioid prescriptions to a seven-day (or less) supply. Additionally, if your daily dosage exceeds a set amount, the pharmacy must contact the prescriber for the claim to be paid. If a patient is identified as “at risk” for opioid abuse, Medicare will contact the prescriber to determine whether a drug management program should be utilized.

Changes to Medicare Advantage Plans
A number of helpful changes went into effect in 2019.

Improved MA Plan Enrollment Period
You now have up to three months (Jan. 1 to March 31) to try your Medicare Advantage plan and switch to another MA Plan or even switch to Original Medicare. Previously you only had about a month and a half (Jan. 1 to Feb. 14). If you revert to Original Medicare, you also have the option to sign up for a Medigap and/or Part D drug plan. For more on enrollment plan options, see the National Council on Aging’s fact sheet.

MA Plan Expanded Network Coverage
Some MA Plans are providing more expansive coverage for the use of out-of-network providers for 2019. In most cases this improved coverage comes at a higher cost. Choosing one of these plans could make sense if you want to be able to use out-of-network providers with an MA plan.

MA Plan Expanded Choices
About 600 new Medicare Advantage plans are being added in the U.S. in 2019. The CMS says more than 91% of Medicare recipients will have access to 10 or more Medicare Advantage plans, and in some areas the number of Part D prescription drug plans and options will increase as well.

MA Plan Lifestyle Support
As of this past January, MA plans have the option to cover nicotine replacement therapy, diabetes, congestive heart failure, meals delivered to your home, transportation to a doctor’s office and certain safety features, such as bathtub grab bars and wheelchair ramps. If your plan provides this coverage, you will need the recommendation of your doctor to obtain it.

MA Plan Home Health Care
MA plans can also elect to pay for home health aides to help with dressing, eating, personal care and other daily activities. As with other types of lifestyle support, your doctor must recommend coverage for you.

MA Plan Step Therapy Option
Also new for 2019, MA plans have the option to apply step therapy for certain doctor-ordered and Part B drugs. This means you may be required to try a lower-priced medication before the plan approves a higher-priced medication to treat your condition. If your MA plan has elected step therapy, it must offer a drug management care coordination program and may offer you incentives, such as gift cards, to encourage your participation.

The Bottom Line
Familiarize yourself with the changes listed above and watch for changes in the works for 2020 and beyond, including plans to mandate lower drug prices and offer even more services to Medicare beneficiaries.

THE CONCEPT INVOICE FINANCING AND HOW IT WORKS

What is Invoice Financing?

Invoice financing is a way for businesses to borrow money against the amounts due from customers. Invoice financing helps businesses improve cash flow, pay employees and suppliers, and reinvest in operations and growth earlier than they could if they had to wait until their customers paid their balances in full. Businesses pay a percentage of the invoice amount to the lender as a fee for borrowing the money. Invoice financing can solve problems associated with customers taking a long time to pay as well as difficulties obtaining other types of business credit.


Invoice financing is also known as "accounts receivable financing" or simply "receivables financing."


Understanding Invoice Financing

When businesses sell goods or services to large customers, such as wholesalers or retailers, they usually do so on credit. This means that the customer does not have to pay immediately for the goods that it purchases. The purchasing company is given an invoice that has the total amount due and the bill's due date. However, offering credit to clients ties up funds that a business might otherwise use to invest or grow its operations. To finance slow-paying accounts receivable or to meet short-term liquidity, businesses may opt to finance their invoices.

Invoice financing is a form of short-term borrowing that is extended by a lender to its business customers based on unpaid invoices. Through invoice factoring, a company sells its accounts receivable to improve its working capital, which would provide the business with immediate funds that can be used to pay for company expenses.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
Invoice financing allows a business to use its unpaid invoices as collateral for financing.
A company may use invoice financing to improve cash flow for operational needs or speed up expansion and investment plans.
Invoice financing can be structured so that the business' customer is unaware that their invoice has been financed or it can be explicitly managed by the lender.

Invoice Financing From the Lender's Perspective

Invoice financing benefits lenders because, unlike extending a line of credit, which may be unsecured and leave little recourse if the business does not repay what it borrows, invoices act as collateral for invoice financing. The lender also limits its risk by not advancing 100% of the invoice amount to the borrowing business. Invoice financing does not eliminate all risk, though, since the customer might never pay the invoice. This would result in a difficult and expensive collections process involving both the bank and the business doing invoice financing with the bank.

How Invoice Financing is Structured

Invoice financing can be structured in a number of ways, most commonly via factoring or discounting. With invoice factoring, the company sells its outstanding invoices to a lender, who might pay the company 70% to 85% up front of what the invoices are ultimately worth. Assuming the lender receives full payment for the invoices, it will then remit the remaining 15% to 30% of the invoice amounts to the business, and the business will pay interest and/or fees for the service. Since the lender collects payments from the customers, the customers will be aware of this arrangement, which might reflect poorly on the business.

As an alternative, a business could use invoice discounting, which is similar to invoice factoring except that the business, not the lender, collects payments from customers, so customers are not aware of the arrangement. With invoice discounting, the lender will advance the business up to 95% of the invoice amount. When clients pay their invoices, the business repays the lender, minus a fee or interest.

THE RIGHT STRATEGY AND APPROACH TO TAKING UP HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS FOR INDIVIDUALS AND LOW INCOME EARNERS IN 2019

HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS FOR INDIVIDUALS AND LOW INCOME EARNERS

Introduction: This article comprises whole lot of topics and subtopics for your understanding and answers to your questions, we shall be talking about health insurance as the keyword because every topic we shall be discussing here should involve around health insurance. Health insurance is one of the most important insurance politics as it involves the healthy life of a person. It’s been said “that health is wealth”, the ability of a man to live a healthy daily life is the beginning of success and more advancement to it. 

Well quickly let’s typically buttress on the course of our topic which is health insurance plans for individual and low income adult but first

What is health: health is the ability of a person to live either at a good or bad state of body system and which affects the daily living of such person presently or grow within a specific time. In other words we are saying health can be in a good(positive) or bad(negative) state and when in a good state it is been said such person is living on illness free life and if in a bad state is been known that such person is facing one illness or the other which causes discomfort. 

The ability to live a healthy life is affected by so many factors which can include dirty environment, the type of food you eat, un cleanliness and so many others , but some of these illness are self caused and by others can be natural that just come unexpectedly once in  awhile but many fear the state of been ill because it causes great discomfort and hinders daily activities and the greatest fear is when  you fall into such state (bill) and unable to take care of yourself due to lack of finance or low income which you could make you not to be able to take care of yourself immediately . You could be financially buoyant today and tomorrow is no longer coming a expected, in this case what do you? Do you start taking up loan to afford taking care of huge health cost due to this lapses it came about the need for insuring your health which is called “health Insurance”

What is health insurance? Health insurance can be defined as that type of insurance that covers the whole or part of the risk of a person incurring medical expenses and spreading the risk over a large number of persons. Health insurance coverage pays for the benefit as a result sickness or injuries. It includes insurance for losses from accident, disability, medical expenses or accidental death. A contact that requires a health insurer to pay some or all of your care cost in exchange for a premium, the health insurer is the insurance company that sells insurance plans/policy in which special benefits ar allocated to the insured(the person who buys the policy) which are covered by your health insurance policy through the purchase of premium(money paid to the insurance company) in order to receive the benefits that will be paid by the insurance company

How health insurance works:

Upon taking a health insurance plan, the date your policy begins will totally depend on when you apply for coverage, as you take up the policy, the insurance company will send you the plan/policy information including ID Cards to use when claiming your benefits like visiting the doctor’s office, pharmacy or hospital. Your health insurance company will send an explanation of benefits outlining the charge for your care, the portion your plan covers and the amount you will likely be charge-out-of-pocket expenses. Your insurer pays your provider (health institutes or organizations) their share, then you are been billed for the remaining balance which you pay directly to them

Types of health insurance

There are basically seven types of health insurance plans that I beneficial to you but having the right health insurance benefits for you or your business is very important. Knowing the types of this health insurance plan will help you evaluate the options each year as part of your internal small business audit or personal life. We shall briefly discuss the types of health insurance plan as it is not our major keyword or topic 

1 Preferred Provider organization (PPO): a PPO plan is a preferred provider organization group health insurance plan/policy. With this plan, employees are encouraged to use a network of preferred doctors and hospital/these providers are contracted to provide service to plan members at a negotiated or discounted rate.

2 Health Maintenance Organization (HMO): with this plan, employess generally has lower out-of-pocket expenses but also have less flexibility in the choice of physicians or hospitals than other plans. This plan may require employees to chose a primary care physician (PCP) , to see a specialist, employee will need to obtain a referral from their PCP. HMO’s generally provide coverage for a broader range of representative services than other policies. Employee may or may not be required to pay a deductible before their coverage starts and would usually have a co-payment.

3 Point of service plan (POS) : This plan combines features of HMO and PPO plan. POS also may require employees to choose primary care physician (PCP) from the plan’s network providers. In, general services rendered by the PCP aren’t subject to the policy deductible.

4 Exclusive providers Organization (EPO’s): This plan are similar to the HMO plan because they have a network of physicians that their members are required to use except in the case of emergency. Employee members will have a primary care physician (PCP) who will provide referrals to in-network specialist, EPO members are responsible for small co-payments and may require a deductible.

5 Indemnity Health Insurance Plan: this plan is known for fee-for-service plans because of cost paid to the members for covered services. The member may be responsible for deductibles and co-insurance amounts

6 Health savings accounts: this type of plan is tax favored savings account that is used in conjunction with an HAS-compatible high deductible health plan to pay for qualifying medical expense, though this plan can be attached to group health insurance

7 Qualifying small employer health reimbursement arrangements (QSEHRA): This plan is a small business health insurance benefit specifically designed for business with fewer than 50 employees, it also allows of tax free money for employees by small business. It is a good solution for small business because there is no minimum contribution requirements and all full time employees receives value.

Advantages and benefits of Health Insurance

Advantages and Benefits of Health Insurance includes the following categories:

Health Insurance is often ignored by young professionals and their attitude towards Health Insurance has been somewhat lax. A basic health insurance policy offers a wide range of benefits that protect individuals and low income earners from unexpected medical expenses. This policy will cover for medical treatment expenses, pre and post.

Hospitalization expenses, room rent, critical illness, domiciliary expenses and day-care procedure. Insurance companies offer some of the best term insurance plan based on your needs and requirements. Hence it will bring down medical expenses to a great extent so that your family does not feel the pressure of the situation.

1 Ambulatory patient service

2 Emergency services

3 Hospitalizations

4 Maternity and newborn care

5 Mental health and substance abuse disorder services (including behavioral health treatment)

6 Prescription drugs

7 Rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices

8 Laboratory services

9 Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management

10 Pediatric services, including oral and vision care

In broader terms we can say the advantages and benefits include:

1 Cashless Treatment - If you are insured with health insurance the insurance company works in collaboration with the respective hospital.

2 Pre and post hospitalization cost coverage - Health insurance policy also covers pre and post hospitalization charges depending on the insurance plans purchased.

3 Transportation Charges - It covers the ambulance charges for the transportation of insured.

4 No Claim Bonus - This is offered in case policyholder does not file a claim for any treatment in the previous year.

5 Medical Checkup - Few insurance companies offer free health checkup option based on previous NCB’s

6 Room Rent - Depending on the premium amount being paid hospital room expenses are also covered for the policyholder.

7 Tax Benefit - Premium paid on Health insurance is tax deductible under section 80D of the Income Tax Act.

8 Alternative Treatment : Various health insurance companies in India offer alternative treatment benefits. Presently alternative treatment has gained considerable popularity. Many insurance providers offer alternative treatments such as Homeopathy, Yoga, Ayurveda, etc. under their health insurance plans.

9 Attendant Allowance : Health insurance companies now offer attendance allowances to the adults accompanying the insured person at hospital given that the insured is a child. However, the number of days for which an insurer provides attendant allowance is fixed.

10 Bariatric (Weight loss) Surgeries : Since bariatric surgeries are no longer considered as cosmetic weight loss process and are seen as a life-saving treatment for obese people who are suffering from weight related diseases, various health insurance companies offer Bariatric (Weight loss) Surgeries.

11 Convalescence Benefit : Convalescence benefit is also known as recuperating or recovery benefit. This takes care of the insured person’s recovery expenses. The convalescence benefit is offered in order to cover additional costs that could arise out of hospitalization, such as loss of income.

12 Daily Hospital Cash Allowance : Health insurance companies nowadays cover the expenses that are not covered under the mediclaim policy, such as travelling and food. Under daily hospital cash benefit, insurers offer a certain amount of money per day depending on the type of plan and insurance company you choose.

13 Domiciliary Treatment : Domiciliary treatment stands for the treatment at home under medical supervision. Many health insurance companies have now extended this coverage. However, the expenses arising out of domiciliary treatment has been capped down to a certain limit for a certain number of days.

14 Dental Treatment : A number of health insurers offer dental covers and takes care of the dental treatment once in a certain period of years.

15 Expenses Related to Organ Donor : Health insurance policy also covers the expenses related to organ donor as well. Given that the basic cost of a kidney transplant could range somewhere between Rs. 3 to 6 Lakhs, health insurance policy takes care of this. Some health insurance companies reimburse the entire cost of an organ donor while some impose a cap on the expenses and offer it as an add-on cover.

16 Free Health Checkup: You can avail free health checkup under your health insurance policy. Free health checkup is generally offered periodically once after every 4 claim free years.

Health Insurance for Individuals and Low Income Earners

Health Insurance plan for individuals

There are many insurance companies that offer attractive options on Individual Health plan. It is reasonable to get confused as to which Individual Health Insurance policy to purchase.

Here is how you can choose the best Health Insurance for individual:

1 Compare all the benefits and offers offered to you by the Health Insurance companies on the Internet.

2 Go for the insurance policy that offers you the highest sum insured on health and medical treatments.

3 Choose the health insurance plan that has the minimum waiting period on pre-existing illnesses. Most of the insurance companies have a waiting period of 2 to 3 years.

4 Purchase a Health insurance policy that has the maximum age limit for renewability of the policy. So that the policy you buy at younger age can insure you at old age after renewal.

5 Check the company’s claim settlement ratio. Go with the ones that have the highest claim settlement ratio.

6 Go for the insurance companies that offer the maximum sub-limits on Hospital room rents or ambulance charges.

7 Compare the premiums of all the available health insurance policy.

8 Check the hospitals that are enlisted by health insurance coverage.

9 Always check the reviews and feedback of the company online.

10 Also make sure you check the exclusions of certain illness in the policy.

Health Insurance plan for Low Income Earners

For people with low income that live in the United States, the federal government has mandated that states offer a program called Medicaid.  Each state has different eligibility requirements.

Many states have other health-care programs for those who may not qualify for Medicaid - comprehensive coverage may not be included, but certain services like primary care or contraception might be.

States also may offer coverage for children even if a family's income exceeds Medicaid qualification limits. Federally this is known as CHIP or the children health insurance program.

Visit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to get links to each state's programs: Medicaid Gen Info

And If you do not qualify for Medicaid, check with your state insurance department to see if they have any other programs to help you. If there aren't any other programs available consider a catastrophic health insurance plan which doesn't provide routine care but will provide coverage in an emergency.

Individuals with low income have been receiving subsidies for purchasing health insurance due to health care reform. And the eligibility requirements for Medicaid will also be expanded to cover adults with no children in every state.

Conclusion: we have strategically analyzed all what it takes to fully understand health insurance advantages/benefits health insurance for individuals and low income earners…

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CHEAPEST CAR INSURANCE COMPANIES | A SIMPLE APPROACH TO HAVING A CHEAP CAR INSURANCE

There are so many car insurance companies who offer cheap plans. What we should consider is that cheap plans should be able to cover up our needs at a cheap rate. Most of these insurance companies that offer cheap plans may likely not include the basics of your needs thereby leaving you with a choice to increase your premium. But there are so many factors to be considered in order to arrive at a cheap rate but FIRST let’s discuss some factors to consider when looking for a cheap car insurance company.

FACTORS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER WHEN SORTING FOR A CHEAP INSURANCE COVERAGE

1   Have a clean driving record

A) A driver without a clean driving record can increase your monthly premium by approximately 30-40%

B) Most of the insurance company provides a discount if your driving history is positive

2 A discount after retirement: Some insurance company provides discount to retired drivers

3 There are benefits which some insurance company offers to persons who have more than one vehicle thereby a reduction in your insurance premium of each month

4 Your deductibles should be increased because this will help you save some huge amount of money in a year and reduce every tendency of financial incapability when an event occurs (accident) before your insurer will payout your claim.

5 Cheap car insurance rates are mostly offered to those who fall between 25- 55 years as they are considered as to be the safest drivers (more than teenage and elderly drivers).

6 Combining all your Insurance policies in one insurance company can help you save a lot therefore leading to a cheaper rate and reduction in hassles.

7 It is likely that this has already been your first factor; that is “compare before buying”. It is advisable to compare the price on different insurance companies, do your thorough research and find the one that suits you most.

8 Patience is a key factor: Every insurance company will want to guarantee you that they will offer the cheapest price you can ever think of but a patient person will carefully look into various price of different insurance company and outline the benefits as this will help you get a cheaper rate.

NOTE:  What you feel is cheaper for you may be costly for another depending on what you want from the insurance company.

These factors are applicable to all countries as it is regarded as a general factor irrespective of the legal system

In the United States we can say the cheapest car insurance company is the GEICO and Nationwide….

Note: The editors pick is not based on sponsorship or favoritism as at when writing this article but on true research and findings…..

CHEAPEST CAR INSURANCE COMPANY IN USA

In California,USA, these are the cheapest insurance companies: (Treating California as the biggest insurance company)

State               Company                 Rate

Anaheim        GEICO                    $1124

                      Nationwide              $1176

Aliso Viejo    Century National     $ 840

                      Nationwide              $1008

                      State Farm               $1104

  

Alameda        GEICO                   $1042

                       Nationwide            $1176

Alhambra       GEICO                   $1385

                       Nationwide            $1488

                       Century National   $1500

For Los Angeles:

Also for Los Angeles, GEICO still becomes the cheapest car insurance company. Insurance coverage are quite expensive in Los Angeles which averages at $ 2, 257 for age range of 30 years to 40 years.

In San Diego:

GEICO, Nationwide, State Farm, Grange insurance annual rates cost as low as $1,446 on average

In San Jose, CA

The mean annual premium from these three insurers was $1,163 bed on our findings which is about 49% cheaper compared to others.

In San Francisco, CA

The cheapest car insurance rate starts with Century National, GEICO, Nationwide, Grange Insurance and State Farm with an average of $1,288 a year to insure a car.

In Oakland CA,

In Oaktown the GEICO, Century National, and Nationwide averages at $ 943- 49% lower than the overall cost in the city

In Anaheim, CA

It averages at $1239 a year for auto insurance about 42% less than Anaheims city wide cost of $1760 (GEICO, Nationwide and Century National)

Coverage Type         Minimum                     Limits

Bodily Liability       $15,000 per person/    $50,000 per person/

                                 $30 per accident         $100 per accident

Property Damage $5000 per accident        $50000 per accident

Uninsured/Underinsured                           $50000 per person/

                                                                   $100000 per accident

Uninsured/Underinsured

Motorist Property                                       $50000 per accident

Comprehensive Collision                           $500 deductibles

But this listed above are based on cheapest car insurance companies and it is likely you might not get 100% satisfaction from the insurance company. So we came out with the best Insurance companies based on high level of service offered and customer’s satisfaction rating thus:

       I.   Eric                    Best Overall Company

     II.   State Farm          Best Large Company

  III.     Progressive         Best Company after getting into an accident

  IV.     USSA                  Best Company for Military families

    V.    Metromile           Best company for low Mileage drivers

  VI.    The HartFord       Best Company for handling claims

VII.     Liberty Mutual    Best for the shopping experience

In the UK

Insurance in the UK is quite expensive to purchase.  I would say it’s better to just look at some certain factors and determine by yourself which would be the cheapest car insurance companies. It will be so broad that you may get tired of reading this article but quickly am gonna give quick rundown of what you should know and do before purchasing a car insurance in the UK and this is also applicable for anyone looking for a cheap car insurance coverage and this will actually help you to determine the cheapest of car insurance companies.

CHEAPEST CAR INSURANCE COMPANIES IN UK

1 Direct Line Car Insurance

2 Admiral Car Insurance

3 By Miles Car Insurance

4 Debenhams Car Insurance

5 Insure Daily Car Insurance

6 Day Insure Car Insurance

7 Curva Car Insurance

8 Collingwood Car Insurance

9 Aviva Car Insurance

10 Sheila’s Car Insurance

11 Saga’s Car Insurance

12 Age Co Car Insurance (over 50’s ONLY)

13 Churchill car insurance

STRESS LESS TIPS:

1 GoCompare Car Insurance     348.79 a year

2 Money Supermarket’s Car Insurance  348. 45 a year

3 Direct Line Car Insurance    348. 34 a year

CHEAP CAR INSURANCE COMPANIES IN CANADA

1 Intact Financial Corporation

2 TD Insurance

3 Aviva Canada

4 State Farm Mutual

5 Wawanesa Mutual Insurance

6 RBC Insurance

7 Co-operators Insurance

8 RSA Canada Group

STRESSLESS TIPS

1 Ex Calibur Insurance Company

2 Ask Avenue Insurance Company

3 Loan Estate Insurance Company

   
Check in Kanetix.ca

CHEAP CAR INSURANCE COMPANIES IN AUSTRALIA

1 SGIC Insurance

2 Allianz Australia Insurance

3 Difford Truck Insurance Australia

4 Apia

5 1300 Insurance

CHEAP CAR INSURANCE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

1 Aiico Insurance Plc

2 NAICOM Insurance

3 Custodian Insurance

4 Linkage Assurance

5 Oasis Insurance Plc

6 Lasaco Insurance

Useful Tips: FULL CAR INSURANCE COVERAGE

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