High costs could cause you to forgo needed treatment.
Whether you are talking about your home or your car, proper insurance is an important consideration. Insurance is even more critical when it comes to your health and the well being of your family. Failing to obtain an affordable health insurance policy puts you, your loved ones and your family at risk.
Unpredictable Costs
Some costs, like your monthly rent or mortgage payment, are predictable. Other expenses, including annual health care costs, are notoriously unpredictable. You can determine how much you spent on doctor visits, prescription drugs and other health care costs last year, but that tells you nothing about what your costs might be going forward. A serious illness can strike at any time, as can an accident or other tragedy. Unforeseen circumstances can cause your health care costs to skyrocket, which is one reason it is so important to find an affordable health care policy.
Financial Risk
All insurance is designed to deal with financial risk, and health insurance is certainly no exception. If you do not have a health insurance policy in place, an accident or serious illness could leave you with tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands in unpaid medical bills. Paying off bills that high is beyond the capability of most people, which is why health care costs are a leading cause of personal bankruptcy. If you fail to find the affordable health insurance coverage you need, you could wind up as one of those statistics.
Putting Off Needed Care
Individuals who do not have health insurance are more likely to put off necessary care and age-appropriate screening tests. As a result, those individuals are more likely to be hospitalized after their conditions worsen, resulting in even higher health care costs and additional debt for the individual who lacks insurance. Had those individuals had insurance coverage, they could have seen a doctor and caught the problem early when it was more treatable and less costly.
Limited Options
If you lack health insurance you might find your choice of health care providers severely limited. Those without health insurance must often rely on crowded medical clinics and other free services, with long lines, overworked doctors and nurses and other issues. If you have sufficient health care coverage in place you can use any of the providers in that company's network.
Higher Costs
Insurance companies are able to use their large size and negotiating power to get lower rates from doctors, hospitals and other providers. Those who lack health insurance have no bargaining power, and as a result they are often charged the full rate for the services they receive. That can make hospital bills that much higher and that much more difficult to deal with.
Tags: health care, health insurance, care costs, health care costs, affordable health, bills that
