Do you work for a company that offers it’s employees health insurance? If so, you may want to pay attention. November is open enrollment month for the health insurance policies offered by a lot of companies. It is especially important that you take a close look at your insurance plan this year. Things are about to change!
If you qualify for their health insurance policy, you should receive a packet of information about what the health plan offers, and what the premiums will cost. It can be tempting to simply sign the forms without really reading all the details. There have been a lot of changes in health insurance this year, and you may be in for some unpleasant surprises if you don’t take the time to find out the details about next year’s health insurance plan.
There may not be much difference between what was covered by last year’s plan, and what will be covered by next year’s plan. However, the cost of health care premiums are expected to increase by 12.4%. Which means you will be paying more for the same plan you had last year. If you work for a small business, you may end up paying more than a 12.4% increase.
Some employers are shifting towards a high deductible health insurance plan for next year. Others, who already were using this kind of plan are increasing the amount of money that an individual must pay for out of pocket before the insurance plan will begin to cover the cost of medical care. Many HMO plans are requiring a larger co-pay next year than they did the previous year. Or, some employers are switching over to something called co-insurance. These kinds of plans require a person to pay for 20% of the cost of visiting the doctor, which can be much more expensive than a co-pay.
That fat packet of information about your employer’s health insurance plan is extremely important. Take the time to read it over. If you do not understand something, ask questions. You might need to talk to someone in your HR department to gain a better understanding of what it’s all about. Those that choose to ignore the pile of papers and just sign up for the health insurance may find themselves paying more out of pocket costs than they expected.
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