What is Health Insurance: An Introduction

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Health insurance is a form of insurance which protects the insurance-taker against unplanned medical
expenses. Just like other insurance products, the buyer has to buy insurance, usually by paying
premiums, which in turn will “cover” the buyer against costs incurred due to pre-specified illnesses
and medical conditions. Usually medical insurance is purchased privately, but in some countries and
jurisdictions, the government may provide the citizens with health insurance or medical care.

History of Health Insurance

The first modern health insurance product were made available in the 1850s when the railway and
mining workers had the option of buying what was called accident insurance. This accident insurance
protected then costs incurred due to an accident while on work – which was quite hazardous for both
railway-workers and miners. From such beginnings the modern health insurance arose – its affect can be
seen in the prevalence of disability insurance, and from the fact that health insurance is referred to as
disability insurance under California State law.

Terms

Here are some of the well known concepts and terms from the domain of Health Insurance:

• Cover this is the maximum sum that the insurance company will provide for the wellness of the
policy-holder.

• Premium This is the sum that the policy-holder, who is the buyer, pays to the insurance
company for the insurance cover provided

• Deductible This is the sum that the insured shall have to pay before the insurance company
starts paying their expenses in a given year. This can be a flat sum, such as $500, which the
insured would need to spend before they get any insurance. A related teem is Co-Payment,
which is the sum that is paid by the insured as part of a single visit to a doctor etc.

• Exclusions There are diseases or services that are not covered by a particular insurance policy.
The insured will have to pay for them completely out of their own pocket.

• Complrehensive vs Scheduled Insurance Comprehensive plans pay for the health costs for the
insured after a deductible has been paid by them. These can cover catastrophic events as well
as normal day-to-day expenses. In comparison, Scheduled Plans are a watered down insurance
plans that only pay to a limited extent, and are usually supplemental to the comprehensive
insurance plans.Or check out:http://healthcoverinsurance.com/

All these will vary from plan to plan, and to know more about your plan, refer to the offer document.
Health insurance is a combination of mathematics, statistics and medical science, mixed with the risk
and randomness that is human life – no wonder it is a complicated product. In this article we talk about
some factors you should know to compare two or more policies easily.