Learn More About Individual Insurance, Medicare, HMO & PPO Insurance Plans
There are many different health insurance policies to choose from, and many choices to make based on whether you are looking for individual or family-based health insurance coverage. Here at Health Insurance Online, we want our consumers to be as informed and educated as possible. In this section we help to explain some of the more commonly used terms on our site, as well as those you might come across during your search for quality health insurance coverage. These are:
Health Insurance Plan Information
Click on a provider below to view plan information:
- Aetna of Arizona
- Aetna of California
- Aetna of Florida
- Aetna of Michigan
- Aetna of Nevada
- Aetna of Virginia
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Connecticut
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Indiana
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kentucky
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Missouri
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nevada
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Hampshire
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Ohio
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Virginia
- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Wisconsin
- Assurant Health
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia
- Blue Cross of California
- CIGNA
- Health Net of Arizona
- Health Net of California
- Health Net of Oregon
- Humana One of Texas
- Unicare of Illinois
- Unicare of Michigan
- Unicare of Texas
Individual Health Insurance
There are mainly two types of health insurance, individual and family based. Individual health insurance can be provided in two ways, either by the individual's employer or by themselves. Individual health insurance plans can come in several types, including HMO and PPO, which will be explained in a moment. When selecting a health care plan for yourself, it's important to take your individual needs into account, such as age, overall health, medical history, and so on.
Medicare Supplemental (Medigap) Insurance for Seniors
Medicare insurance is usually granted to seniors over a certain age. Medigap is here to fill in the gaps left by typical Medicare coverage. Since Medicare does not cover all expenses in every case, many private insurers sell Medigap policies to supplement federal insurance benefits for their customers.
HMO - Health Maintenance Organization
Though there are several variations, HMO plans usually enable members to have lower out-of-pocket healthcare expenses, but at the cost of flexibility in the choice of physicians or hospitals, since customers have less choice than other health insurance plans. As a member of an HMO, you will be required to pick a primary care physician. Your primary care physician will take care of most of your healthcare needs, but before you can see a specialist for any reason, you'll need to obtain a referral from your primary care physician, thus making this plan slightly less convenient than other plans.
PPO - Preferred Provider Organization
A PPO plan encourages its customers to use the insurance company's network of preferred doctors and hospitals. These chosen health care providers have been contracted to provide services to the plan's members at a lower, discounted rate. Customers typically won't be required to choose a primary care physician but will be able to see doctors and specialists within the network at your own discretion.
For more detailed information about Health Maintenance Organizations and Preferred Provider Organizations visit Wikipedia.