Tweet

Health Insurance for New Business Owners

Guest post by: Alston Balkcom

Article Overview: One of the biggest hurdles of women and men who go into in business for themselves is making good choices about medical insurance protection for themselves and their families. Adding to the confusion is the fact that pricing and access varies wildly by area, most there is no standardization for medical insurance plans. For most people this can really make it it a pain to choose the right medical insurance policy and contract options.

Health Insurance for New Business Owners

One of the biggest hurdles of women and men who go into in business for themselves is making good choices about medical insurance protection for themselves and their families. Adding to the confusion is the fact that pricing and access varies wildly by area, most there is no standardization for medical insurance plans. For most people this can really make it it a pain to choose the right medical insurance policy and contract options.

Unless one is aware of all choices and all the ramifications of each choice, it can be easy to make the wrong choice. Fortunately, licensed insurance professionals who specialize in medical insurance plans are available in all areas.

Healthier people who start shopping around for a medical insurance plan, are likely to be pleasantly surprised to learn that they can buy private coverage for LESS than they may have been paying for coverage through an employer's plan. In many group policies, the younger, healthier employees subsidize the older, less healthy employees. On a group policy, this tends to be a great deal for the older, established, less healthy employees – but not so good for the young, healthy ones.

The flip side of that is that some option are available on a group policy BECAUSE people, who won't use those coverages, can subsidize those who do. Coverage for pregnancy is one example of this.

Many looking for pregnancy-related coverage will be disappointed if they need an individual plan. This coverage isn't available in most areas on non group plans.

Because there is no averaging on the individual policy, it's nearly impossible to find maternity benefits in any state. When maternity benefits are available, the pricing in combination with the “waiting period” before conception, effectively turn it into a prepayment plan.

At this time, health care insurance is regulated on a state by state basis. When considering which type of contract is desired, it's crucial to look at more than just the policy premium. There is no true "bargain" with health care insurance; you really do “get what you pay for”, and the lower premium quotes are usually for high deductible insurance plans; supplemental insurance plans; limited benefit policies; or even health discount plans, which aren't even regulated.

Some options available in many states for health insurance include the following:

Medicaid may be an option, but it is not the best option for most. This is a state run insurance program for low income, special needs, or children.

Preexisting Condition Insurance Plan – The Health Reform Act mandates every state to have this new program. These plans are for people who've been uninsured for at least six months, and cannot find an insurer willing to cover a preexisting condition that they have

High Risk Health Pool – state run program for people with preexisting conditions that can't get private coverage any other way; which is NOT Medicaid. Many states have closed their high risk health pools, in favor of the Preexisting Condition Insurance Plan, but a few still have both types of plans.

Private medical Insurance – an individual or family policy purchased either directly from an insurance company or through a licensed agent. These types of plans are best for most who qualify for them.

Insurance Carriers consider each person who applies separately, and may accept some and say no to others. Selecting the right contract can be a complex undertaking for the average individual. The services of a a health insurance agent familiar with the state options and the evolving health insurance industry, can help compare coverages and costs to find a balance between affordability and protection.

Related Articles
  Getting Health Insurance Online
  Florida Health Insurance Corp Reports Health Care Reform
  5 Best Ways To Save On Health Insurance
  Self-Employed Health Care Insurance Choices
  Alternatives to COBRA health insurance
  How ICD-10 Will Change Health Insurance
  Health Insurance Reform Now
  How Do Medical Insurance Deductibles Work?
  Health Insurance Questions to Ask When Shopping for Coverage.
  Do You Need International Travel Health Care Insurance?
  Applying for Pregnancy Insurance While Pregnant
  Homeowners insurance - Don't forget about it
  Common Health Terms to Know
  Job Changes And Health Insurance
  eHealthInsurance.com Health Insurance | Health Insurance Company Guide
  Tips For Insurance: How To Cut Your Costs In Half
  Health Plans vs. Health Insurance In America
  Maternity Medical Care Insurance - Starting Insurance While Pregnant
  How do HMO and Private Plans Compare?
  Avoid this Common Costly Health Insurance Error

Article Tags: business owners, health insurance, insurance protection, medical insurance policy
Referred by: http://www.searchengineworkshops.com



Related Forum Posts
New Small Business Topic - Hello everyone, I'm on the lookout for new topics to add to my site. We just launched a Franchising section and are planning Human Resources section. Do you have any thoughts for a new section? Here's a list of what we currently have: Angel Investors Branding Bank Loans Business Coaching Business Plan Franchises (New) Insurance Legal Marketing Public Relations Sales Small Biz Loans Venture Capital
Re: Insurance for Home Based Business? - hi there I'm a newbie here.I can get good information regarding the Insurance for Home based business and more. It's really safe to have Insurance for a home based business. Thanks a lot for discussing some important issues here and i feel really happy to be a part of this.
A ton of Great Women - You might want to profile Teresa Cascioli of LakePort Brewery. She has an amazing story! I met her at at the celebratory luncheon for the Profit/Chatelaine Top 100 Women Business Owners. The Top 100 list is also a great resource for inspirational stories of Women Entrepreneurs.
My entry - 1. The Best Business Books Ever: The 100 Most Influential Business Books You'll Never Have Time to Read - this is a fascinating book about the history of Business theory, and I'd recommend it to anybody. 2. The Big Book of Small Business: You Don't Have to Run Your Business by the Seat of Your Pants, by Tom Gegax. Ditto. 3. PADI: The Business of Diving Book Okay, so this book won't be of use to anyone who doesn't want to start a scuba store, but I did, and this book was of course invaluable to me in reaching that goal.
Artist vs Biz Owner - I think there is a fine line between "artists" and "business owners". Artists begin with their passion and self expression and try to find a market for it. e.g. I like painting flowers and I think people out there like flowers too so that is what I am going to sell. This is where hard-selling starts and the starving-artist persona. Business Owners (who can be artists too) first find out wants and needs in the market and deliver that. e.g. Ashley may have noticed that MySpace had some real yukky backgrounds and thought I can do better - then filled that need. would love if Ashley were on this site too...


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

WHAT IS MANAGEMENT CONSULTING

Using your social media profiles to drive traffic

Unspoken Yet Important Rules for Book Proposals

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.