Lower Your Health Insurance Premiums!

It is no secret that health care costs are on the rise. Each year, we receive that dreaded letter in the mail letting us know that are monthly premiums are going up.  If you are one of the lucky ones who has health insurance offered and paid for by your company, CONGRATULATIONS! Although you so not have much flexibility in your plan options, you often have more extensive coverage at a comparable cost to those who are in need of individual health plans. If you are self employed, or not covered by your employer, here are a few tips to help reduce the cost of your overall health expense.

• Increase your annual deductible - We are programed to think that the lower the annual deductible, the better the plan and the less money we will have to lay out.  This is not necessarily the case. If you currently have a $500 annual deductible, you are likely paying anywhere between $50 and $400 more than a plan with a $1500 deductible. Even on the low end of the spectrum, you are paying an additional $600 per year to pay less out of pocket in the event that something happens.In most cases, it makes more sense to increase your annual deductible and decrease your monthly payments

• Look at an HSA plan- HSA plans are high deductible PPO plans that allow you to set up a tax deductible health account to pay for the cost of your health care. These plans can often reduce the cost of your monthly premiums by 50% or more! HSA plans have a few features that set them apart from traditional PPO plans. 
  
  • Higher deductibles- Typically, HSA plans have deductibles ranging from $1,800 - $10,000
  • This deductible usually must be met before any services are covered.
  • In some cases, preventative care visits are covered at 100% prior to meeting the deductible
  • A health savings account can be established allowing you to save up to $3,050 as an individual, or $6,150 as a family to a tax deductible savings account.  This account can be used to pay for services during the deductible period, over the counter medicines, prescriptions, and even vision and dental costs.  In addition, this account is rolled over from year to year so you never loose your contributions.

In order to ensure you are not paying too much for your health insurance, Guide My Finances offers a no-cost health insurance comparison where we look side by side at your existing policy and other options.  Give us a call today!