What are HMOs? Is it a good health insurance option here in Chicago, IL?

Owen

Chicago, IL

Hi there, Owen. HMOs are health maintenance organizations, which are essentially, pre-paid health plans. You pay a monthly or annual premium in exchange for comprehensive health care, which usually covers doctor consultation fees, hospital confinement, emergency care, laboratory tests and certain surgical procedures. More often than not, though, you would need to secure these medical services from your HMO’s contracted doctors and hospitals in Chicago, Il.

Depending on your chosen plan or HMO, you could opt for co-payment on doctor consultation fees as well as other health services, which redound to lower monthly or annual premiums. Health care costs, even under co-payment schemes, are generally lower and more predictable when you’re signed up with an HMO. However, you do have to expect little inconveniences such as having to wait longer for consultation appointments or having a limited choice of primary doctors or having to secure recommendation from your primary doctor before undergoing further procedures, for example.

To get a better idea of what HMOs are available in Chicago, Il, you may want to enter your zip code in the forms on this page You can also request for several free online health insurance quotes from local insurers. Compare this to get a clearer picture of how much this is going to cost you.

Tags: cheap health insurance, health insurance lead, health insurance leads, health insurance quotes, health insurance rates

My son will be going to college out of state very very soon. His health insurance coverage is only within Chicago Illinois IL. Emergencies outside IL will be covered, although would not count so much because he will be away full time. Will it be a great idea if I’d sign him up for a student health insurance through his university and cancel his health card? He has a Blue Cross HMO. I was told university insurance might be expensive.

Pete

Chicago IL

I suggest you better check to see if your Blue Cross HMO has any providers under contract in the states where your son will be attending college. If there will be none or just a few, your current health insurance card will be of no use while your son is still in college. You better check first if the university health insurance is a comprehensive plan. That mightl be a better option for your son’s health insurance while he is away from Chicago Illinois IL. But make sure that your son’s coverage will not be limited to the university will cover even outside the school year and even in IL which is home.

Verify if the insurance company has a track record of financial stability and good ratings from unbiased reports, opinions of your friends, and colleagues because you want a smooth process during claims.

I remember when my daughter had to leave for an exchange student program in Canada 2 years ago. Her health insurance card was only limited to US states and she was to stay in Canada for 2 years for that program. I had to cancel her old health insurance card after I purchased one from her school in Canada. That is why it is important that before you cancel anything, better make sure your son is already with health insurance coverage, especially is he is starting to travel. This will ensure that he is protected by health insurance, wherever he goes.

Tags: health insurance, health insurance leads

Health insurance seems like the hot topic wherever I go. My traveling partner told me that he was able to save some of the pain of health insurance by claiming significant tax savings for himself and his family. I health insurance in Chicago Illinois IL and I just want to know what’s the allowable.

Judy

Chicago, IL

If you have not been claiming reductions for certain health insurance expenses on your tax returns in Chicago Illinois IL, you may want to see a professional tax filer and determine your options form past filings. I am not a tax expert, but I can be certain that health insurance items are definitely deductible.

If you pay your own health insurance or premiums for your dependents a part of those payments are probably deductible. You should summarize the premium expense and be sure you maintain accurate records of these. Even if you contribute to a group health insurance plan at work, you should be prepared to itemize your contribution so you will know where your money goes. Ask you employer for annual statements reflecting your contributions for previous years so that you will have accurate records as to where your remittances go.

You could also compile all prescription payments and combine them with all health care deductibles that you have paid for yourself and your dependents and try to do the same exercise for your dental expenses and you may have some sizeable health insurance deductions. You can always take all this information to a tax advisor in Chicago Illinois IL and see if this remedy will reduce the pain.

Tags: health insurance, health insurance deductible

I am a diabetic and I recently acquired a job-based health insurance from my employer in Chicago, Illinois. I would like to ask what a pre-existing condition exclusion period is. Apparently, I am most concerned, which was emphasized by the company nurse to me because of my pre existing diabetes.

Bart

Chicago, IL

Most life insurance companies in Chicago IL have imposed a pre-existing condition exclusion period with the objective of trying to discourage people from waiting until they get sick in order to purchase health insurance. This means that if you have a medical problem which exists at the time you got your health insurance from your employer in Chicago, the insurance company will deny all claims pertaining to this medical problem for a certain period of time.

So since you have a job-based coverage, the pre-existing condition exclusion period is limited to 12 months-18 months (depending on your insurer’s policy) and only applies to conditions for which you sought treatment in the 6 months leading up to enrollment. You may be able to apply creditable coverage to you insurance in order to offset your pre-existing condition exclusion period. Just like if you were on an individual policy before enrolling in your job-based coverage in Chicago, you may be able to subtract the amount of time you were covered on your individual policy from the pre-existing condition exclusion period.

The rules governing pre-existing condition exclusion periods in individual policies vary widely from state to state, which means that governing rules in Illinois shall apply to Chicago. As a general rule, they are very different from the rules limiting pre-existing condition exclusion periods in job-based coverage in all states. Check out these consumer guides which contain Illinois-specific information about pre-existing condition exclusion periods in individual policies.

Tags: health insurance, health insurance policies

I would like to be perfectly clear about the differences between a deductible and coinsurance as these terms relate to my health insurance. Please explain. Thanks for your help for I don’t know much about health insurance in Chicago IL!

Wagner

Chicago, IL

Good day Wagner,

This is an important question. Health insurance deductibles and coinsurance are often misunderstood terms. Let’s see if we can clarify them for you.

A health insurance deductible is a defined amount that a subscriber must pay before his health insurance takes over. Take your prescription plan for example. Most health insurance policies in Chicago Illinois IL require the subscriber to pay an annual amount for prescriptions before their exposure begins. Therefore you will pay that amount when you make your first prescription purchases each year. When you have paid your full family or individual deductible for prescriptions, your health insurance carrier will pay the rest. Health insurance deductibles apply to individuals and families. You should review these amounts each year.

Many health insurance plans in Chicago Illinois utilize a coinsurance formula. This is generally an established percentage that determines the exposure for the subscriber and the carrier in Chicago IL. In the most common coinsurance formula, the subscriber pays 20% of a covered service and the health insurance carrier pays 80%. This formula is called 80 percent coinsurance. Other derivatives of this formula are available. Hope this clarifies these health insurance terms for you, Wagner. Take care in Chicago.

Tags: health insurance, health coinsurance

I just quit my job which resulted to the cancellation of my group health insurance policy which was part of my fringe benefits with them. I am currently unemployed but with ample savings for about another 6 months of not having a job. Is there any way I can get protection for medical expenses at a low cost in Chicago while I am still looking for a new employer?

Mira

Chicago, IL

There’s always something that can be done, Marie.

Fortunately, there are life insurance companies in Chicago IL that offer temporary or short-term health insurance policies. Such health insurance policy is designed for those who need temporary health coverage or those who have pre existing medical conditions or are in between jobs.
When do you need to get one? As soon as you can! You shouldn’t put off until it is too late. You wouldn’t want to see yourself ending up paying whopping hospital bills especially now that you are still without a job or a company-sponsored health insurance policy. You do not have to wait until an insurance agent calls you or gives you an offer for a health insurance coverage. What you can do instead is to start shopping around using the internet. You can easily get some free health insurance quotes online from reputable health insurance companies. Most people commit the mistake of not talking to an agent or making a move to get an individual health insurance policy for the misconception that a health insurance policy is too high or will not cover the medical requirements that they need. This shouldn’t be the case as there are many health insurance companies competing out there who are just as determined as the others to make you sign up with them!

I am getting my own health insurance before I go to post graduate school in Chicago. What are my choices?

Amanda

Chicago, IL

Plenty of choices for you, Amanda.

First of all, you have to consider the type of policy you would like to have for your health insurance in Chicago. Most major health insurance policies have a high deductible and a co-insurance with a lifetime maximum limit, which is usually at $1M or higher). To give you an idea of your coverage, most of policies of this type cover medical necessities such as doctor visits and hospitalization along with physical therapy, xray, outpatient surgery, and other medical procedures. Also, it can be offered with or without a PPO network provision, depending on your health insurance company.

Another type that you can check out are HMO policies. It really means Health Maintenance Organizations, with coverage that is close to that of a major health insurance policy. HMOs have co-payment obligations for you for the carious covered benefits. With this type, you can choose your primary care physician, also called PCP, from a list of network providers.

The last one is the PPO type of health insurance policy which really stands for Preferred Provider Organizations. It normally provides consumers with economic incentives if they contract to patronize a particular group of healthcare providers. A very common style for PPO is making you pay 80/20 if you go to a doctor that is in the network of providers.

But whatever the type is that you choose, there are normally exceptions for emergency care so you have to take a closer look at the policy for you to be aware beforehand of any extra costs for emergency cases.

Before my daughter left for college out-of -state, I purchased the university’s student health insurance plan for her and kept her old one which was under my in-state health insurance plan. Now, the problem is, when she used our health insurance plan in her school she needs to travel quite a distance to see her doctor. Number 1, she doesn’t have a car. Number 2, even if the school has an on-site clinic, she has only gone to the clinic once within almost 2 years. However, this winter quarter, she got really sick for a few days. Some of her assignments due dates could be delayed. What should I do? We live in Chicago IL.

Susan

Chicago, IL

Thanks for asking, Susan.

I had the same problem before. I have a Kaiser, and this is how we attacked this same kind of problem. My son attended college in Chicago. We fly him home on some weekends to see dentist, lab work, dermatology, primary physician, orthodontist, or whatever medical needs he needs. What he does is to notify his professors that he will be having a 3 day weekend, either missing classes on a Friday or a Monday. Meanwhile, when he’s back in Chicago, like there was this one time he had to go to the emergency room and missed classes since he had to wait for his doctor for hours. Kaiser only cover E.R and urgent care outside their providers (accredited hospitals and doctors) and Pharmacy bills can be reimbursed through proof of purchase like receipts for all claims.

I love Kaiser in the sense that it reimbursed all my pharmacy claims…though it took a while since my son forgot to mail the receipts directly to Kaiser Claims and mailed it to us instead. Fortunately, I was able to resolve the issue after ½ of a year…just because of that one mistake. By now, I kinda understand how things should be done for claims, such as making sure my son keeps his receipts. There are kinks of course in certain incidents when you cannot fly your daughter out for medical. At one point, my son got hit by a car, and couldn’t fly out, so everything had to be on us for that case. So that’s just one disadvantage if you choose to keep your in-state health insurance policy.

I am a single parent in Chicago IL and I want to purchase enough life insurance to guarantee that my minor child is cared for if I should die suddenly. How do I handle the “beneficiary” designation? What steps would I take to be comfortable in knowing that my child would benefit from the life insurance proceeds?

Mary

Chicago, IL

I have known of many situations where single parents in Chicago, especially single Moms, are treated more or less like outcasts. This results to having no one that they can actually trust with the care of their children.

In your case, say for example having a life insurance proceeds of $100,000 that goes wherever, can be enough worry to think about. I see the point that even if the single parent has responsible parents, “money” can always change a person’s personality.

The best option you can do is to establish an irrevocable trust and make the trust the beneficiary of the life insurance policy in Chicago IL. This way, you will be certain that the proceeds you paid for would definitely be a benefit for your child.