Blog Profile / Health Insurance Navigator
| URL : | http://health-insurance-navigator.blogs.webmd.com/ | |
|---|---|---|
| Filed Under: | Industries / Medical | |
| Posts on Regator: | 146 | |
| Posts / Week: | 1.5 | |
| Archived Since: | August 12, 2011 | |
Blog Post Archive
Mad and Confused about Rising Health Care Costs
By Lisa Zamosky If rising health insurance premiums and pricier deductibles make you feel angry, you’re not alone. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently conducted eight focus groups in four different U.S. cities to take the pulse of consumer attitudes on the rising cost of health care. The two big take away themes: People are [...]
Keeping Your Medical Records Accurate
By Lisa Zamosky One of the more common types of questions I receive from readers has to do with medical records. Most commonly, people want to know either how to get a hold of their record or how to get rid of information that is wrong. I’ve discussed before on this blog the process for [...]
Drop Weight at Work
By Lisa Zamosky When it comes to New Year’s resolutions, losing weight almost always tops the list. According to a new online survey of roughly 3,000 U.S. adults, conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of Nutrisystem, more than half – 54% – of Americans have resolved to lose weight in 2013. Shedding extra pounds isn’t [...]
Not Happy with Your Medicare Advantage Plan? Change it!
By Lisa Zamosky We don’t get many opportunities in life for a “do-over” – the chance to make a different choice when our first decision was a mistake. But if you’re a Medicare beneficiary, January marks the start of a period when you can make changes to your Medicare coverage if you’re unhappy with your [...]
Will You Shop Online for Health Insurance?
By Lisa Zamosky There aren’t many things we don’t buy online these days. Yet, for most people, turning to the internet to purchase health insurance is a foreign concept. That’s about to change. A central feature of the Affordable Care Act is to build online markets where millions of people who don’t get health benefits [...]
Getting Immediate Medical Care Without a Trip to the ER
By Lisa Zamosky Medical mishaps aren’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when we think about decorating for the holidays and putting that angel on top of the Christmas tree. Yet, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, during the months of November and December 2010, more than 13,000 people were treated [...]
Caregivers Struggle with Medical Costs and Medicare
By Lisa Zamosky A recent survey of 285 adults caring for an elderly parent and active on the online caregiver community, AgingCare.com, highlights the toll caregiving can take on the roughly 42 million adults in the U.S. caring for someone with disabilities. The survey was conducted by eHealth, Inc. Caregivers often find that their relationships [...]
Health Insurance Costs Rise Faster than Income
By Lisa Zamosky If you get health insurance at work and recently selected your 2013 health benefits, it’s likely no surprise to hear that the cost of health insurance continues to rise. A new report by the private health care foundation, the Commonwealth Fund, analyzed state trends in employer-based health insurance costs in 41 metropolitan [...]
Finding Insurance with a History of Cancer
By Lisa Zamosky Fran, a reader of this blog, recently posted the following question: I need an individual health insurance policy. I have no health issues now, but I was diagnosed with breast cancer almost 7 years ago. My doctor now says I am free from cancer. Is this considered a pre-existing disease? What are my [...]
Signing Up for Medicare Benefits, Act Now!
By Lisa Zamosky Back in October, I wrote about the start of the Medicare Annual Election Period (AEP). As a reminder, this is the time during which Medicare beneficiaries can: Enroll in a Part D drug plan to help pay for prescription drugs Change an existing Part D plan to a new one [...]
Missing Out on Free Care
By Lisa Zamosky Most of us are a bit fuzzy about the details of our health insurance plan. A new study highlights how a lack of understanding causes many people to skip out on care and, in essence, leave money on the table. Researchers with Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California Division of Research questioned 456 health [...]
Paradoxical Thinking
By Lisa Zamosky A recent survey conducted by the global management consulting firm Accenture, highlights the human tendency to at times claim to want something that, in reality, we are unwilling to put effort toward achieving. More than 3,200 people who plan to buy health insurance on one of the state-based health insurance exchanges being [...]
Changes to Your 2013 FSA Account
By Lisa Zamosky Flexible Spending Accounts, or FSAs, are offered as an employee benefit, and allow you to set aside pre-tax salary dollars to pay for medical expenses, such as deductibles, co-pays, dental treatment, and medical treatments not covered by insurance. A requirement of these accounts is that you decide at the time of enrollment [...]
In Search of Health Insurance
By Lisa Zamosky Sherry, a single mother of two boys, recently wrote with the following question about finding health insurance coverage: I am in a catch 22. My brother supports our family as a trucker. My brother is covered by his job, but because we are not husband and wife I cannot get any health [...]
I Like My Health Insurance. Can I Keep It?
By Lisa Zamosky President Obama’s re-election, which ensures that the health reform law will continue to roll out, has brought many old questions about the law to the surface. Many people want to know: If I get my health insurance at work and I like my health plan, can I keep it? In the early [...]
Finding Drug Discounts on the Go
By Lisa Zamosky Among the most common concerns I hear from readers is the high cost of prescription drugs. There are a host of ways to save on medications, some of which I’ve discussed before on this blog. As high deductible health plans become increasingly prevalent, more of us are on the hook for medical [...]
How Will Health Reform Affect My Insurance Costs?
By: Lisa Zamosky Now that the presidential election is over and President Obama will remain in office, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, is moving forward. That has people wondering once again what the health reform law really has in store for them. WebMD posted a survey asking readers the [...]
Take Action or Watch Your Health Benefits Disappear
By Lisa Zamosky I recently received an email from a reader asking about a change in her employer’s open enrollment policy this year. In years past, employees who didn’t make an active choice of health benefits for the following year automatically defaulted to the plan they already had. This year, her employer has changed the [...]
Short-term Health Insurance is Short on Coverage
By Lisa Zamosky From time to time I answer readers’ questions. I recently received this question about short-term health insurance: I have had independent Assurant Health Insurance in a series of 6-month temp policies renewed for several years. Last February I had a pain in my arm and went to a neurologist. They did tests [...]
5 Tips for Choosing the Right Health Plan
By Lisa Zamosky Many people who get their health insurance at work are in the midst of annual open enrollment, the time to choose your health plan for 2013. Health insurance, as I’ve discussed before, is one product most people find confusing and difficult to properly evaluate against their needs. Maybe that’s why so many [...]