How To Find Private Insurance

Introduction

You may find yourself with no health insurance after being laid off, changing jobs or becoming self-employed. Millions of Americans find themselves in a position to purchase private insurance for health care. Policies can be purchased for children, individual adults, married couples or the whole family. This provides a little flexibility financially if you just cannot afford to cover everyone. Finding insurance can be a daunting job in addition to sorting out all the health care packages, terms and coverage. Make your search a little easier using these helpful tips to find private insurance.

 

 

 

 

 

Step 1

Examine your finances and your budget before shopping for private insurance. Get paper and pen and list an overview of your monthly bills and costs to have a realistic picture of expenses. Compare your income to monthly expenditures to see what is left for insurance. If you have savings and other investments, those items may also need to be considered to establish what amount of money can be set aside to pay insurance premiums.

Step 2

Use the Internet to locate the state insurance division website for your state. Most of these websites are easily found by using a browser and typing in "state insurance division" with the name of your state. Many of these websites will provide lists of private insurance companies offering health insurance within your state. Some sites may include reviews or histories of complaints, which can also be useful information.

Step 3

Locate comparison websites for private insurance companies offering health care policies. There are several websites that offer quotes online or will provide policy coverage comparisons. A comparison site is an excellent resource to get a quick overview of what specific coverages are offered, package deals and some include average prices as well. You can use comparison sites as a tool to weed out insurance companies that are just too costly or do not offer the types or packages of health care coverage you need. Visit HealthInsurance.org, HealthInsurance.com and EhealthInsurance.com for helpful information about private insurance and prices quotes.

Step 4

Get a referral from a respected or trusted friend, neighbor or relative for private insurance. Speaking to a person who has already used or is using a private insurance company is one of the best ways to find good companies. They can also advise you if they experienced poor customer service, costly premiums or unsatisfactory service. You may not get a referral for insurance, but a warning about a company may be just as valuable.

Step 5

Compare several quotes and decide which ones look the most promising. Study deductibles, co-insurance, co-pays, miscellaneous out-of-pocket expenses. Read any notes and recommendations you received about each private insurance carrier. Gather all the documentation and forms required, and fill out an application at the insurance office or apply for private insurance online.

 

Tips

Make notes about each individual to be covered and their health history. You will be expected to disclose preexisting health conditions when applying for private insurance. Most people tend to get focused on the costs and policy coverages. However, be sure and take customer service ratings into account before making a decision.

Comments