NC Health Insurance
Why do I need NC Health Insurance?
Ask yourself these two questions:
- Am I buying health insurance in North Carolina so that I can see my doctor whenever I want and only have to pay $25 or so that I can get my prescriptions filled for a $15 copay?
- Am I buying North Carolina Health Insurance to protect myself from bankruptcy in the event of a major injury or illness?
There is no right or wrong answer here but this will help determine, along with your budget, as to what is the best plan for you and your family. However, the main reason you should have NC health insurance should be heavily emphasized on question #2. If you do not have health insurance in North Carolina, just one visit to a hospital or one major illness can bring financial ruin to you and your family. Medical claims are the number one cause for personal bankruptcies in North Carolina. Therefore our goal here is to find affordable health insurance North Carolina that will not leave you bankrupt after a large claim.
Obviously the cost of health insurance is rising; therefore it is important that you have at least some coverage that is affordable so that if a major illness or injury happens you will be protected and not lose all that you have worked hard over the years to obtain. The key is to find the affordable coverage that is actually good coverage and worth the money. Trust us, some plans that are being “peddled” out there sound really good but are not worth the money. The old adage is true for health insurance “if it sounds too good to be true it probably is”. Our job is to help you distinguish the good from the bad.
There are many types of health insurance policies available from various health insurance companies. We are committed to finding the best, most affordable health insurance in North Carolina for you, your family or your business, that offers the most coverage for the dollar.
Obviously the cost of health insurance is rising; therefore it is important that you have at least some coverage that is affordable so that if a major illness or injury happens you will be protected and not lose all that you have worked hard over the years to obtain. The key is to find the affordable coverage that is actually good coverage and worth the money. Trust us, some plans that are being “peddled” out there sound really good but are not worth the money. The old adage is true for health insurance “if it sounds too good to be true it probably is”. Our job is to help you distinguish the good from the bad.
There are many types of health insurance policies available from various health insurance companies. We are committed to finding the best, most affordable health insurance in North Carolina for you, your family or your business, that offers the most coverage for the dollar.
What are the different types of NC Health Insurance?
The most common type of health insurance in North Carolina is a major medical plan. Within this category you have a couple of options:
- Preferred Provider Organization (PPO): PPO’s are now the most common network plans available in North Carolina. PPO’s consist of a group of hospitals and doctors that have contracted with a network to provide medical services at a negotiated rate. You are generally allowed to go to any hospital or doctor as long as they are a part of the PPO network and receive the PPO discounted rate for care. This is commonly referred to as in-network. If you decide to use services outside the network, your out of pocket costs can be much higher due to increased deductibles and co-pays.
The most common major medical PPO plans in North Carolina are:
Traditional Copay Plans:
Copay plans are your more traditional plans that most of us are familiar with that have had health coverage through an employer. These plans offer you a set fee for doctor office visits and prescriptions drugs, commonly referred to as copays.
Copay plans typically have two or three annual deductibles per family, depending on the carrier. Once the deductible is met then you have coinsurance where the plan pays a portion of the bill (typically 70% or 80%) and you would pay the other portion up to a certain amount. Most carriers have a maximum of two coinsurance obligations on a family plan.
Because the health insurance companies in North Carolina are taking on more potential up front liability by offering copays, these plans are typically more expensive than plans that don’t offer copays.
Health Savings Account Plan:
Health Savings Account plans are commonly referred to as a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP). HDHP's are a type of health insurance plan that offers lower premiums and higher deductibles than a traditional copay health plan. Some common designs of an HDHP plan include:
- Only one deductible per family. Traditional plans have at least two and
sometimes three deductibles per family depending on the carrier.
- No copays for office visits and prescription drugs. All expenses towards this
are counted towards the family deductible.
- Once the family deductible is met, insurance covers 100% of remaining
expenses.
- Preventative care is usually covered 100% by the carrier.
A health savings account (HSA), is a tax-advantaged medical savings account available to taxpayers in the United States who are enrolled in and used in conjunction with a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP). The funds contributed to the account are not subject to federal income tax at the time of deposit. Funds may be used to pay for qualified medical expenses at any time without federal tax liability. Withdrawals for non-medical expenses are treated very similarly to those in an IRA in that they may provide tax advantages if taken after retirement age, and they incur penalties if taken earlier.
Catastrophic Plan: A catastrophic plan is one that will mainly cover your hospitalization bills once you have met your annual deductible. These plans typically do not cover preventative care, office visits or prescription drugs. Not having prescription drug coverage is a major liability and one that we do not recommend going without. These plans typically have very high deductibles and low premiums.
Indemnity Plan: This type of plan offers the most choices because you are allowed to go to almost any doctor or hospital. You are not required to use network services, such as in PPO's and HMO's. The downside to these NC health insurance plans is that routine doctor visits and preventative care are not usually covered. The premiums, deductibles and co-pays are generally higher on these plans also.
