Insurance Basics: Home
Your employer may offer more than one health plan, or you may be shopping for your own individual plan.
Preventive services, such as vaccines and screenings, can help you avoid certain diseases and catch others in their early stages, to limit the harm they can cause.
Thanks to a law passed in the spring of 2020, most Americans can be tested for COVID-19 for free. But that law didn’t make treatment for the virus free. Medical services for COVID-19 can be costly and sometimes run into tens of thousands of dollars. Whether or not you’ve been diagnosed with COVID-19, you can take steps now to understand your protections under the law and manage the costs of your treatment.
Your plan contracts with a wide range of doctors and other practitioners, as well as hospitals, labs, radiology facilities, pharmacies and other providers. These are the providers in your “network”. Each of these providers has agreed to take your plan´s contracted rate as payment in full for services.
Most medical plans do not include coverage for many dental services. Often, dental services are covered under a separate plan. Like medical plans, most dental plans have specific out-of-pocket costs, like coinsurance, copayments and deductibles.
After you visit a provider, you may get a bill telling you how much you have to pay.
Suppose your insurer won´t pay for a healthcare service, or pays less than you had expected. You have the right to “appeal”, or ask for your case to be formally reconsidered.
Healthy lifestyle behaviors include regular exercise and nutritious eating. Are you looking to carry out such behaviors but unsure how to start? If so, you may want to explore the wellness programs offered by your employer or health insurance plan.