All The Different Policies Can Be Confusing, Take a Moment to See What Health Insurance Will Do For You.

One of the major benefits provided by the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is that access to health insurance will be broadened and extended to people who probably never had a chance to obtain this type of insurance. This may be the first time that people will encounter health insurance, so they need to know what it is.

Simply put, health insurance is the kind of insurance that pays for medical and surgical expenses. There are different types of health insurance. Some have the insurer pay the costs of medical services directly to the provider of said services. Other types have the insured pay for these costs from their pocket first and claim for a reimbursement with the insurance company.

The term service provider in health care refers to a doctor, clinic, hospital, laboratory, pharmacy, or any other health care practitioner. The insured is the policyholder or the one receiving the coverage. The insurer is the insurance company providing the coverage. There are countries where universal health care coverage is in place, where the state pays for all the medical services needed by its people, but the U.S. is not one of these countries. Health insurance in the U.S. is typically provided by employers as part of their employees’ benefit package. But anybody can purchase health insurance coverage if they wish too, even those who are already covered by an employer-sponsored health insurance plan.

In countries where health coverage is provided by the state, it is viewed in the same way as education, police protection, public works, and other government provided services. Health insurance is mandatory for everybody. In the U.S., health insurance is viewed in a different way. Health insurance is every individual’s responsibility, except for certain groups such as the disabled, the elderly, or the military veterans. With the PPACA, U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration will make it mandatory for everybody to be covered with a health plan and there will be consequences for those who fail to obtain health insurance.

Medical services are a necessity as everybody will need medical attention at some point in their lives. This type of service cost money and ideally, people who need medical attention should be able to focus on recuperating, and not worry about finding the money to pay for the hospital. This is the beauty of a health insurance plan, as it takes away the worry of raising the money for medical bills. This is particularly true for people who are suffering from chronic ailments like diabetes. These people require continuous health coverage in the long term to properly manage their disease.

There are millions of Americans without health insurance coverage. According to one study, the number amounts to about 50 million, and there are millions more who do not have adequate insurance coverage. Another study suggests that over 26% of working age Americans with gaps in their health care coverage are mostly due to being unemployed or changing jobs. American children are more likely to have access to primary care physicians when compared to children in countries with public insurance. Another significant finding is that emergency care in the U.S. can vary according to the type of health plan the patient has. People suffering from serious ailments in the U.S. have better chances of receiving medical care among all the other developed countries.

Under the Affordable Care Act, children are defined as anyone under the age of 26 years old. This means that people within this age group can continue to receive medical coverage from their parents’ health insurance plans until the age of 25 regardless of their circumstances. Unless of course they opt to receive their coverage from their own employers.

A 2010 survey suggests that the average premium for individual health insurance is at $167 and the average deductible is $2,632. For families, the average premium is at $392 and the deductible is at $3,531.

There are two broad categories of health plans or health insurance coverage — private and public health insurance. A study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that the nation’s health care system relies heavily on private health coverage, as over 58% of the people are on some sort of private health plan coverage. Public health insurance is offered in the U.S. to some degree through Medicare, which is a social insurance program provided by the government for people over the age of 65, the disabled, and people suffering from chronic diseases, such as end-stage renal disease.