Health Insurance: A Primer

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Health Insurance A Primer
As with any insurance, a health insurance policy
is a contract. You make set payments, and if you
need medical coverage, the insurance company will
pay the costs. Although this sounds simple
enough, health insurance has many versions and
options. Richard Cayne of Meyer International
wants to make sure that you understand the
various options that you should consider when
selecting coverage.
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What You Will Have to Pay for a Health Insurance
Policy
The following are costs that you as the
policyholder will be responsible for. When
selecting coverage, it is important to consider
all these and keep in mind that the more you pay,
the more coverage you may be able to purchase.

• Premium
• Co-payment
• Deductible

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Premium
This is the amount you pay for the policy. It is
usually monthly and depends on the type of
coverage.
4
Co-payment
If your policy has this option, you will be
responsible for paying this amount, normally for
doctor visits and sometimes for filling a
prescription.
5
Deductible
A way to lower premium costs is to have a higher
deductible. This is the amount that you are
willing to pay yourself before the insurance
company starts paying your medical bills.
Co-payments are often not counted towards this
amount.
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Richard Cayne says
Consider not only how much you can budget a month
for coverage, but also how you can or are willing
to spend if you need a doctors care. For
example, you may want to think about a higher
deductible if you are reasonably healthy. Your
premiums will be lower, and you can sometimes
negotiate higher levels of care. To continue
this discussion, contact Richard at Meyer
International.
7
What You can and cannot Get with your Healthcare
Policy

• Out of pocket maximums
• Exclusions
• Pre-existing condition
• Prior authorization
• Coverage limits

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Out of Pocket Maximums
This is when an upper limit is set for how much
you have to pay for certain services. Once it is
reached, the insurance company will start paying.
9
Exclusions
In many cases, the insurance company will not
cover certain treatments, and you will be
responsible for paying for them.
10
Pre-existing Condition
If you have a medical condition before you
purchase the policy, the insurance company often
will either not cover any expenses related to it
or raise your premium.
11
Prior Authorization
For certain treatments or procedures, you will
need to get it approved first, but once obtained,
the insurance company is obligated to pay for
them.
12
Coverage Limits
Some policies will only pay up to a specific
amount for specific types of care. After this
ceiling is reached, you will have to pay for all
subsequent bills.
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Richard Cayne Insurance companies are obviously
going to try to get as much from you for as
little as possible. You need to be very careful
and make sure you understand all the exclusions
and loopholes so that you dont end up paying for
insurance that wont pay for most of your medical
needs. To continue this discussion, please
contact Richard at Meyer International.
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Contact us
Meyer International Ltd 399, Interchange 21
Building, 23rd Fl., Unit 3, Sukhumvit Road,
Klongtoey-Nua, Wattana, Bangkok
10110 Thailand Tel [phone] /
81-(0)50-5539-1501 Fax [phone]
http//meyerjapan.com