Merritt Personal Lines Manual: Check the Deductibles and Other Useful Tips

As with other types of insurance, the higher your health coverage deductible, the lower your premium.

For most people, a deductible in the $100 to $250 range is the most manageable. But compare other deductibles, too. If your family has been healthy for a number of years, you may want to switch to a deductible of $500 or $1,000. You'll notice a sizable reduction in premiums.

Save money on premiums, if necessary, by taking larger deductibles and covering smaller costs yourself.

Most policies have an out-of-pocket maximum -- when your covered expenses reach a specified limit in a given policy year, a reasonable fee for the benefits that are covered under your plan will be paid in full by your insurer and you no longer have to pay the co-insurance. But, if your doctor bills you more than the reasonable and customary charge, you may still be required to pay some of the costs.

Most policies have lifetime limits, too. It's smart to look for a plan with a lifetime limit of at least $1 million. If it's lower than this, you could run through coverage if you ended up having major health problems for several years.

Finally, remember some general shopping tips.

Be careful of a plan whose description of benefits sounds too good to be true. It may be. Often, agents -- in an attempt to convince you to purchase a policy from them -- will give inaccurate, exaggerated and misleading descriptions of the benefits provided by policies.

Similarly, agents sometimes try to get you to surrender insurance you already own and replace your coverage with a policy they are selling by misrepresenting the policy, by making an incomplete comparison of the policies or even by telling you that your current company is in financial trouble.

As with all insurance policies, it pays to compare the costs of similar policies available from different insurers.

Shop aggressively when you first buy a policy; after that, change insurers or policies only when you desire to make substantial changes to your coverage. If you cancel one policy to purchase another, there is generally no refund of premium and you may be subject to new policy limitations and restrictions.

In short, there is a plan to meet your needs. Remember to review the cost, check the benefits and the service issues that are important to you, before you make a choice. And, don't be afraid to ask questions.