Six Ways You Can Lower Your Medical Costs
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With the high cost of medicine nowadays, I thought it would make sense if I list ways to lower medical cost. So there they are:
1. Ask professional, fraternal, alumni, or religious groups you belong to whether they sell group health insurance to members. Group coverage is often – but not always – less expensive than individual coverage. If you don’t belong to any such group, look into joining up.
2. Consult an independent insurance agent who sells comprehensive major medical policies for individuals from a variety of companies. He or she may be able to turn up a policy that you couldn’t. Tell the agent you want policies only from financially sound companies.
3. Consider joining an HMO rather than buying an individual policy from an insurance company. You may have to give up a little freedom in your choice of docs, but you’ll help keep your medical costs down.4. Choose the highest deductible that you can afford. If you figure you can probably afford $1,000 in medical bills this year, take a $1,000 deductible; it might be 25% cheaper than a similar policy with a $100 deductible.
5. Become a smarter medical consumer. Actually, this is sound advice for everyone these days. The more you understand about your own health, the more you can save. According to studies by the actuarial consulting firm Milliman & Robertson, at least 10% of doctor visits are wholly unnecessary. Speaking of doctors, you may be surprised to know how much doctor fees can vary in the same area. Studies show that charges for the same service can differ by more than 700% among local doctors. Lately it’s been getting a little easier – though not too easy – to compare prices, since some local consumer and business groups have been putting together price guides.
6. Get healthier, too. You might be able to slash your health premiums by as much as 50% by stopping smoking or losing weight or taking action to lower your blood pressure or cholesterol level. Don’t expect your insurance agent to tell you about such discounts. It’s up to you to ask.
Any thing else I’m missing?
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2 Responses to “Six Ways You Can Lower Your Medical Costs”
The advise here is sound for those who can afford health insurance. If you have no coverage and have hospital debt, you need to do some work on reducing your medical bills. Visit my blog at http://www.patientprotection.blogspot.com for free advise on how to lower your hospital bills.
Sincerely,
The Patient Protector
By
The Patient Protector (Who am I?) on Aug 8, 2008
Hello!
Thanks for your feedback. Will check your post later and if its interesting, will recommend your stuffs too.
Thanks again,
Sam
By
moneyexpert (Who am I?) on Aug 9, 2008