HEALTH INSURANCE

Health Is Wealth, Not A Joke
The United States government does not provide health insurance for all its people, and health insurance is not obligatory for those living in the US. It is optional, but highly recommended and necessary since health services are very costly, more than in any other country anywhere across the globe.

There are two types of health insurances in the US, private and public. Most people use a combination of both. The US public health insurances are: Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Medicare
Medicare is a national health insurance program that dates back to 1966. It provides health insurance for US nationals older than 65 years old, but also for younger people with end stage renal disease, ALS, and some other disabilities.
Data shows that in 2018, Medicare provided almost 60 million individuals with healthcare in the US, over 51 million of which were older than 65.

The Medicare program is divided into four parts:
Part A – which covers hospitals, skilled nursing and hospice services.
Part B – covers outpatient services, including some providers’ services while inpatient at a hospital, outpatient hospital charges
Part C – is an alternative called Managed Medicare, which permits patients to select health plans with at least the same service coverage as Part A and B, often the benefits of Part D, and an annual out of pocket spend limit which A and B lack. To sign in this part, one must sign in Part A and B fist.
Part D – covers mostly self-administered prescription drugs.

How to Choose a Good US Health Insurance Plan?

When looking up for a good health insurance plan make sure you ask questions like:

• Does that plan grant you with the right to go to any doctor, hospital, clinic or pharmacy you choose?
• Are specialists such as eye doctors and dentists covered?
• Does the plan cover special conditions or treatments such as pregnancy, psychiatric care and physical therapy?
• Does the plan cover home care or nursing home care and medications a physician might prescribe?
• What are the deductibles? Are there any co-payments?
• What is the most you will have to pay out of my own pocket to cover expenses?

Make sure you also understand how a dispute about a bill or service is handled by your provider, as in some plans, you may be required to have a third party decide how to settle the problem. We recommend the GeoBlue Xplorer plan for foreigners in the United States.