Insurance Basics: Home
Your employer may offer more than one health plan, or you may be shopping for your own individual plan.
Skipping health insurance may seem like you’re saving money in the short run—especially if you’re young and healthy. But the cost of getting care without health insurance can be more than you expect. An unforeseen hospital stay, for example, can cost you tens of thousands of dollars.
To get the best care, it helps if you and your doctor make decisions together. The process is called "shared decision making." This article suggests ways to talk to your doctor about three common health problems where there may be no clear, "right" option. They are uterine fibroids, type 2 diabetes and low-risk prostate cancer. These are examples of preference-sensitive conditions.
Your plan´s rules and costs may differ for some types of care. Knowing these rules can help you control your costs and get the right care in the right setting.
Acupuncture, chiropractic care and massage therapy have one thing in common: They may not be covered by insurance. That’s because they may be looked at as alternative treatments, not part of conventional medical care.
Sometimes you know ahead of time that a major event will happen in your life. Examples might include getting married or divorced, changing jobs or having a baby. Other times, such as at a death, you may not have advance warning.
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