Expression GreenExpressing the need for a healthy green lifestyle

Whether you deny it or not, health life insurance can really help protect your family. Although there are a lot of people who do not entertain the idea of death, it is still something that cannot be avoided. Unless you have discovered the fountain of youth, death is the ultimate threat to your loved ones.

Death does not just entail the loss of a loved one. In many cases, death haunts people because of the series of events that it triggers. For example, the death of the breadwinner in the family is more than enough reason to have larger than life problems. Would you want your family to experience this kind of situation? Get a health life insurance now.

Health life insurance in focus

A health life insurance is a kind of well, insurance, that covers a lot of things. Funeral costs are usually the major coverage of most health life insurance. In some cases, a health life insurance also provides people with the benefit of not worrying about hospital bills. There are also health life insurances that will provide your loved ones with certain amount of money after your death.

Offered by the different public and private institutions, health life insurances can be compared to social securities. People who have health life insurances are required to pay a minimum amount during a period of time. Once the insurance policy matures, the bearer of the health life insurance would be entitled to several benefits agreed in the policy.

Advantages of having a health life insurance

Having a health life insurance for your family will always provide you with a number of positive benefits. To give you an idea, here are just some of the things that you would enjoy for having a health life insurance:

• You’re insured!

A health life insurance would guarantee that you or your family will have the financial means to support and solve whatever life and health related problems will come along the way.

• No worrying about funeral expenses

Death may have its toll financially. As a matter of fact, funeral expenses can just aggravate the lost of the families left behind. Some sources say that funeral expenses costs an average of $10,000—an amount that not all families have. And since death is always unexpected, having a health life insurance that covers funeral expenses is like being prepared for the unknown.

• Money for those who were left behind

Some health life insurance also covers giving certain amounts of money to the beneficiaries of the insurance holder. Depending on the type of health insurance plan, the funds could be received in bulk or in scheduled releases. Having a health life insurance of this type will ensure that life would still go on for those who were left behind.

• No debts/bills to be paid

Since a health life insurance will cover all the expenses for the funeral and hospitalisation, families need not worry about paying bills or getting credits. This would mean that they would be free of worrying about the consequences of the death of their loved one.

To discuss the terminology Group Health Insurance, we must first familiarize ourselves with the concepts Insurance and Health Insurance.

Insurance is a kind of protection, a safety net against unforeseeable losses. No one knows what the future holds, and insurance is a good way of preparing for what may come. Health insurance is a protection against medical costs. The insurer pays the cost of the insured person if the latter falls ill – due to accident maybe, or any of the covered causes. Magnify the health insurance more than ten times over and you get the Group Health Insurance.

Group Health Insurance is a health coverage based on a group of people under a company or an organization. The cost of the insurance is allotted among the members of this group. The group enjoys a wide range of benefits of Group Health Insurance. A master contract or policy is issued to their employer or to any of the group’s affiliations.

Health insurance is one of the most important benefits offered to an employee through their employers. Not only does an employee feel secure with this insurance, he also feels assured of the care of his employers. Companies spend billions annually for health insurance, and group health insurance make up the bulk of the revenues earned by health insurance companies.

Group health insurance can be availed by any company with two or more employees. Requirements vary around the world, though one constant requirement is the proof of legitimacy of the company’s operation. The number of employees to be insured under the group plan determines the type of coverage available to the employer. A company with more than a thousand employees will have customized health plans, and these may include additional benefits.

With the rising costs of prescription drugs and health care in recent years, companies have experienced a drastic increase in the cost of providing health care benefits to their employees. Many companies are forced to cut back on the benefits of the health plan, and some even require their employees to pay a higher share of the monthly premium of the insurance, even to the point of requiring them to pay the 100% of the dependent premium! Decreases in the health insurance benefits cause some employees to pay medical expenses themselves when they require medical treatment or prescription drugs. Businesses offering full premium payment for employees and their dependents are fast decreasing.

Whether you are at home, in office, in the hometown or on the run, ill-health can catch you unaware. It is important for you to get yourself insured and is equally important to your family in case something might happen to you. But it is necessary to go through all possible options before zeroing in on one policy. To help you decide, health and medical insurance quote can prove useful.

Medical And Health Insurance covers the consumer in case of any mishap that occurs to him. Health problems due to natural calamities, maternity situations, dismemberment etc are all covered by health and medical insurance. And to find the right policy for your coverage, health and medical insurance quote can be used to compare the available policies.

As a part of medical and health insurance, many policies are available like:

• Student insurance which provides medical and health insurance to students who have gone abroad or are studying in the UK

• Short term health insurance: this provides a short term policy for the consumer according to his need. The consumer can avail limited benefit as the amount limit is previously set.

• Individual health insurance: the individual is insured with the help of this policy and the premiums depend on his age, status etc

• Group health insurance: these policies can be availed for the insurance of a complete group or family.

Also, with the help of health and Medical Insurance Quote you can choose the insurance policy that is just suitable for your need. If you need a group insurance or an individual insurance plan you can choose your requirements from the health and medical insurance quote. International Travel Medical Insurance, Dental insurance etc are other few types of policies that you can use.

To ease out the availability of insurance policies to everyone, they have been made available online. Health and medical insurance quotes can be referred online to compare the policies and choose the most suitable of all the health and medical insurance policies.

Many families and groups of people have now started realizing that a group health insurance plan is vital to stay protected in case of unexpected medical emergency. Today, group health insurance plans have also become popular in business sector also where the employer provides these insurance plans in form of incentives and benefits.

Almost all medical treatment and expenses are included in a group health insurance plan, such as dental care, medical bills, hospitalization, prescription cards, medicines, tax assistance and even pet care.

There are varied kinds of group health insurance plans made available by insurers meeting different types of requirements of individuals, families and companies. To search for the best health insurance plan, whether for your family or for employees, one can browse through a health insurance directory to find the best health insurance plan available. The health directory contains a list of different insurance plans along with the insurance companies offering group health insurance plans.

A health insurance directory is one of the best resources to look for a health insurance plan. The directory contains a detailed listing of insurance agents and brokers with their names, addresses, contact numbers, e-mail addresses and websites providing health coverage to people. The agent listings available in such directories are also listed out by location.

The health insurance plans and the insurers listed in the online health directory are categorized under various sections covering various medical specializations, such as cosmetic surgery, emergency services, fitness, first aid, fitness, injury claims, nursing, nutrition and pharmacy.

Other branches that are covered in the group health insurance plans include optical care, sports medicine, weight control and mental health. The insurers provide compensation for all these types of health related problems that may occur at any time in your life.

By referring to a health insurance directory, you can find the best insurance plan for your family. Also businesses can refer to this directory to find out which group health insurance plan would be suitable to their employees and the company.

Health insurance plans come in different category and for each organization, group health insurances are scheduled. Group health insurance plan is grouped plan offered by the employer to the employee to form a group insurance. Group health insurance benefits both employee and employer who offered. Since it covers both employee and employer in a group, it is called as group health insurance plan. It is the affordable health insurance plan which can be obtained by the employer and employee on different insurance amount and premiums. The cost of premiums will differ from one insurance policy to another. The coverage, payment and premiums will vary from one individual to another and also with regards to the policy obtained.

This type of health insurance compiles with the statutes of the state and federal government and it is framed as per the constitutions of the country and considering the importance of employees in the mind. The benefits of health insurance coverage include free coverage and it comprises to be the excellent offer required for the employee. Nowadays, group health insurance plan becomes more important and in large organization it is issued to the employee as per their requirements. These kinds of insurance plan will reduce the medical expenses of the employee and also enables them to come up for medical treatment in the Medicare institutions.

Based on the company and the members of the organization, the group health insurance coverage plan will varies. Group health individual insurance is said to be an important health insurance among the employer and employee. California group health insurance coverage is designed to meets the requirements of the health care needs of the employees belonging to the organization. Under different kinds of health insurance plan, group health insurance fetches more demand in the market and huge number of employees is making it use of it. California health insurance coverage is offered for small, medium and large source of organizations.

Group health insurance plan is the equal coverage which satisfies the requirement of employee medical care. These kinds of insurance plans are offered to the employee by the employer to suit for wide applications. The main purpose of issuing group health insurance plan is to retain their employees in the office and also it helps for company growth and development. Generally, most of the companies issued group health insurance plan to establish and provide protection to the employees sustained in the business organization. For employees, it is considered as an important requirement and it is also offered with more advantage to the employee.

Many small business owners make the mistake of purchasing a group health plan without utilizing the services of experienced insurance agents to help choose the most viable and affordable plan for their company.

In most cases, the insurance agent’s commission is already included in the cost of the health care plan, so companies don’t pay any more to take advantage of the valuable experience a reputable insurance agency can offer.  When choosing between the many health plan options available, employers can actually save time and money by consulting with an established insurance agency before investing in medical coverage plans that best suit their employee’s needs and the company’s budget.

Studies have shown that one of the benefits of providing group health insurance for employees is the increased retention rate for a quality workforce. In these days of high gas prices and increased costs, offering health insurance at the workplace is a big incentive for many who cannot afford individual health insurance coverage. Investing in your company’s future healthcare can increase loyalty, and overall employee satisfaction, productivity, security, and of course, employee health and fitness. The cost and options of these plans vary according to group size and the state in which your insurance company, or provider is located.

Group health insurance plans start with at least two full time employees and because of healthcare reforms, every state is required to offer this coverage in the workforce. These insurance coverage plans vary greatly and business owners have many options available to suit their budget; from basic coverage, to plans that cover preventive care and dental coverage. The many options offered in managed care plans, or HMO’s, and fee-for-service plans can be very confusing.

Employers must decide how much they can invest and what type of medical services they can afford for their employees. HMO’s are designed to offer reduced rates by using a select group of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers. Employees must stay within that network when getting medical care. Fee-for-service or indemnity group health plans allows your employees to choose their providers. They in turn have control over their choices of doctors and specialists and many options in who they want to visit for their medical services.

The majority of people insured today have insurance plans through their employers. This allows health plan providers to offer many small and large group health coverage plans. For companies with 2-100 employees, and large companies with 100 plus employees, there are several factors which affect the cost of the insurance premiums.  The advantage with large companies is their size which gives them a bargaining chip when it comes to reduced monthly premiums for basic health care coverage plans. Some health plans have higher co-pays for the employees and only cover medical care within the managed network of healthcare providers. Many plans charge higher premiums, but cover more medical services for the company’s employees.

Investing in group health insurance for your employees is a major decision that needs professional advice and planning. A healthy and productive workforce can increase company profits and worker productivity. With an experienced and reputable insurance agent, your company can have the help and expertise to consider all the insurance options available based on your budget, the medical needs of your employees and the costs of medical services in your state. This is an invaluable service for employers who want to consider all options in comprehensive health care coverage of their employees.

As an employer or a participant you might be leaving money on the table by not properly taking advantage of certain features and benefits of your company’s health insurance. As a licensed Consultant and Group Benefits Brokerage company, with clients across the country, we are successful in reducing group benefit expenses because of our experience and our intimate knowledge of the factors used in determining pricing. This top 10 list should be helpful in increasing your insurance knowledge, maximizing your plan benefits and possibly reducing your company’s expenses.

Background and Overview:

For most companies, group benefit plans, specifically medical benefits, are among the highest non-producing company expenses. Unlike other expenses, medical benefits hits home since it affects our employees and our families personally. Therefore, it is of paramount concern that the CFO and Director of Human Resources take into consideration the needs of their employees, the needs of their employees’ families, pricing, and specific benefits being offered.

The ability for an employee or an employee’s family member to use a favorite physician such as a Pediatrician or an OB/GYN is often affected by this decision. The ability for employees and their families to use specialized treatment centers in the event of a catastrophic medical situation also lies in the balance of the Health Benefits decision. Quality and access to medical care varies from insurance carrier to insurance carrier.

Staffing and Retention:

The primary purpose of Group Benefits as a whole as it relates to employers is to attract and retain employees. It goes without saying that the broader the benefits, the easier it would be to attract and retain a higher quality workforce.

As a reciprocal, industries that utilize high turn-over positions with minimum-wage employees may not necessarily choose to utilize the highest quality insurance policies to attract and retain employees. Employee pools may be abundant and the bottom-line total expenses may be more important than the quality and level of care offered.

With that said, let us share with you some money-saving ideas and under-utilized features of your medical benefits. Keep in mind that some items may relate to your current coverage while others suggest a change in coverage or a change in features of your plans.

The following represents our list of the top 10 frequently made mistakes as it relates to Group Health Insurance. This list is in no particular order. Each item may or may not apply to your current situation.

Top 10 Medical Benefits Mistakes:

1. Not Catching Medical Problems Early

To use a few cliché’s, “a stitch in time saves nine” or “prevention is the best medicine”, or “kill the monster while it is tiny.” I am not sure if the last one is a main-stream cliché but it does hammer home the point that prevention is often the best medicine. Early detection is the second best course of treatment. Many doctors argue that colon cancer is extremely treatable if it is caught in the earliest stages. If the cancer is not detected early there is a risk of the cancer getting more aggressive and spreading through the body. Every person should take the time to get regular exams. Every person should be aware of key medical indicators such as weight, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. As a person gets to certain recommended ages, mammograms and other early detection tests should be done regularly. Just because you never went for a cholesterol check does not mean your cholesterol levels are zero. That is as foolish as driving around in an automobile without a gas gauge and assuming you don’t need to put gas in it since there is no indication of the level. The life you save with early detection could be your own or someone who you love.

Depending on the size of your group and which state your business is located in, early detection means fewer large insurance claims which translates into lower premiums for your company.

2. Not Using the “Value Added Benefits”

Many times, when you think of medical benefits you only think about doctor visits and drug plans. Often, employers and employees do not realize that their insurance carrier might also include services known as “Value Added Benefits”.

Health Insurance Carriers offer these Value Added Services to encourage healthy lifestyles. Healthy lifestyles would yield healthy employees which keeps insurance claims down.

It is important to understand your value added benefits for several reasons. First you, your family, and the employees you work with can benefit from these services. Second, your management or human resources department might come off as heroes just by telling employees about these value added benefits. The benefits are already included so you might as well tell people about them.

Examples of Value Added Benefits Include:

a. Vision – some carriers have pre-negotiated discounts for vision care such as eye exams and eyeglasses.

b. Nutrition and Supplementation – Certain carriers provide discounts or reimbursements for nutritional supplements. Supplementation might keep employees healthier and prevent certain diseases. Some employees are often already paying out-of-pocket for supplements so any discounts become bottom-line savings for the employee.

c. Quit Smoking – Employees may be entitled to discounts on programs that relate to quitting smoking. Without going into a lecture as it relates to the dangers of smoking, let’s just say that when an employee is ready to quit, it is easier to do it with the help of professional programs. In the event that the Surgeon General is right about the dangers of smoking, healthier employees are happier and more reliable as an employee. This could also avoid future hospital visits and catastrophic treatments as well as delay premature death.

d. Weight Management – Employees may take advantage of weight management programs. In some cases employees might already be using well known programs such as Weight Watchers™ or Jenny Craig™. Many scientific medical studies directly relate disease and health risk to an individual’s weight. Once again, a healthy employee calls in sick less often, is more productive, and on a selfish side, is likely to minimize the number of claims against your Insurance Policy. Certain company sizes in certain states may be rated and premiums are charged based on the claims filed against the insurance carrier.

e. Gym Membership – Discounts and reimbursements may be available for health club membership.

f. Hearing – Certain hearing centers may have pre-negotiated discounts with your insurance carrier.

g. Bicycle Helmets – Safety equipment such as bicycle helmets may be available at a discount with specific insurance companies and retailers. Certain states mandate that children under a specified age are required to wear a helmet while riding bicycles, skateboarding, or roller skating. Even if helmets are not mandated, it is alarming how many serious injuries might have been prevented with the proper head protection. If you need or want a helmet anyway, you might as well get a discount on it.

h. Store Discounts – Various retailers may have a pre-negotiated incentive worked out with your insurance company such as baby stores or household goods. This is good for the store from a marketing prospective and it is good for the consumer to get a discount.

i. Security Improvements – Security companies my provide discount services for your home protection and safety additions.

j. Stress and Alcohol Management – Different services may exist for stress management and alcohol rehabilitation and treatment programs.

k. Mail Order Discounts – Certain carriers offer additional discounts for mail order prescriptions. This is especially useful for drugs prescribed for the long-term such as heart medicine or cholesterol drugs. You know you need it any way so you might as well stock up by mail.

3. Not Getting a Second Opinion:

Different Insurance professionals have different experiences and abilities. Some Brokers are only Brokers while others are also Licensed Insurance Consultants. Some Brokers specialize in Property and Casualty or Life Insurance while others specialize in Group Health. If you are concerned with your Health Insurance rates and services, perhaps a specialist is what your company really needs.

Speaking as an insurance professional, we of all people, respect and appreciate client loyalty based on past service and existing relationships. On the other hand, how do you really know that you have the most appropriate policy and features if you do not get a second opinion from a different Broker or Consultant? If the relationship with your Broker is that solid, it would not be difficult for your Broker to keep your business. If your Broker’s skills are not current and sharp as it relates to your company, his/her complacency might be costing your company tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars.

Oftentimes, an insurance professional might become complacent with existing clients. This may be due to increased workload, understaffing, or the fact that they are too busy finding new clients. They may not be focusing on your bottom line.

A second opinion introduces a fresh perspective regarding your company’s health insurance needs and options. It keeps your broker honest and reminds them that they need to continue to service and provide creative solutions if they wish to keep your business.

Make sure the carrier alternatives are of “like kind and quality”. That simply means they are an apples-to-apples comparison.

Mix it up a little. Find out what the increase (or decrease) in premiums might be if you increase (or decrease) the co-pay, deductibles, in-network deductibles, and co-insurance. Look at different options with the drug plan as well.

Sometimes it pays to self-insure a portion in order to reduce premiums. Look at the total exposure, have your broker figure out worst cases scenarios, and contemplate the probability that the scenario could come true. This dovetails with mistakes #4, #5, and #6 coming up.

4. Not Looking at the Big Picture of Total Costs

Very often, companies only look at the monthly premiums associated with their healthcare coverage. This is not the only variable when it comes to insurance rates. It is important to look at the total picture which includes:

a. Co-pay amounts

b. In-Network and Out-of-Network Deductibles

c. In-Network and Out-of-Network Co-Insurance Levels

d. In-Network and Out-of-Network out-of-pocket expenses

e. Out-Of-Network Reasonable and customary reimbursement levels

f. Gated or Non-Gated

g. Drug coverage co-pays, co-insurance and deductibles

h. Disease Management and Wellness Programs

i. Employer/Employee Contributions

j. Network Accessibility

k. Disruption Analysis

l. Monthly Premiums

m. Maximum Exposure

n. Maximum Benefits

o. Tax Treatment (See #9)

p. Quality of Coverage

l. Introduced deductibles on drugs

m. Generic and non-formulary drug discounts

Each of the above can be a topic unto itself. We can offer a free consultation to look at your coverage and suggest ways to maximize cost savings and improvements. Please see the “About the Author” section at the bottom of this article for more details.

Paying 100% for Employees

If you pay 100%, by law, employees cannot “waive out” of the insurance plan. Participation must be 100%. By paying less than 100% of the benefits you are able to “create consideration”. This gives you flexibility.

What is so bad about having to take advantage of benefits if you are paying all of it? The fact is, certain employees would not be able to use a spouse’s insurance plan if they had to use yours. The spouse might offer better quality coverage with more options and better quality doctors.

Do you really want to have to pay for everyone’s insurance if they do not want insurance or prefer to waive coverage and go on their spouse’s plan? That means paying higher expenses for something that will likely never get used by certain people.

5. Not Listed as the Right Group Size (or Perhaps a Different Stated Size) Is There Common Ownership?

Depending on your circumstances, such as what state that you do business in, you may or may not benefit by being classified as a small group or as a large group. By simply classifying clients in the most appropriate group size we have saved clients thousands of dollars.

Generally speaking, small groups are considered to be groups consisting of between 2 and 50 full time eligible employees and large groups are considered to be groups consisting of 51+ full-time eligible employees. A full-time eligible employee is not the same as an employee that may be covered under the benefits. For example, a group can have 55 employees, with 40 employees on the group health plan, and be classified as a large group.

Depending on your employee population it could be either advantageous or disadvantageous to be considered a 2-50 sized group. Read #6 of this list for more information.

Is There Common Ownership?

In certain situations some companies have common ownership with other companies. Depending upon the percentage of ownership, in certain cases it makes sense to insure the companies separately, while in other cases it might pay to combine the employees and consider it a larger group.

6. Not Knowing Your Employee Population or Offering Different Plans

Similar to #5 in classifying the group size, money can also be saved by having an overall understanding of the demographics that makes up your group. Typically, younger people are healthier and can often afford to take certain medical risks that older employees cannot afford to take. If you realize that your company is mostly made up of younger people who are healthy, it might be a good idea to utilize a high-deductible tax qualified plan with a Health Savings Account (HSA). A high deductible plan is essentially betting on the fact that claims will be minimal throughout the year, so why not pay the lowest premiums available, and at the same time accumulate cash in the Health Savings Account (HSA)?

A high deductible plan does not necessarily mean that you intend to pass on the increased deductibles to your employees. Your company can be willing to pay the deductible (or a portion) through a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA).

Not Offering Different Plans for Different People

More recently than not, the market has been trending towards companies offering multiple insurance plan options. The company may provide a base contribution allowing the employees to choose between “a base”, “a buy-up”, or “an HSA plan”.

In addition, companies can offer a plan based upon employee classification. For example, “Class 1” employees can consist of executives and managers and “Class 2” employees may consist of all others.

7. Not Comparing your Coverage to Your Peers:

The trick is to be competitive without giving away the shop. Typically, to generalize for a moment, law firms might offer the best insurance available for the money while assembly line workers might be given average benefits for manufacturing. But what is average and how do you find out what is standard and customary?

A “Benchmark Analysis” is a report that can be ordered to get statistics and trends about comparable companies in your industry, company size, and/or in your region. Although these reports often cost some money, the information provided could be valuable in attracting and retaining qualified employees without giving away all of the profits.

8. Blindly Auto-Renewing

Even if you love your Broker, it is a mistake in not treating each renewal period as an opportunity to find out what policies or other insurance companies are more competitive or appropriate for your company. Each renewal period should be treated just like you are looking for insurance companies for the first time.

With our clients this step is invisible to them. We always look at the renewal numbers and compare them to other carriers or to other policies within the same carrier. Over the years it became obvious that the only constant in life is change. Based on the insurance company’s desire to increase or decrease market share, they often choose to increase or decrease their risk tolerance and policies. A renewal period is a great opportunity to make sure you have the right coverage for your circumstances.

9. Not Using the Right Tax Treatment for Your Company

Although we encounter this particular “money-waster” often, we are not an accounting firm and suggest that you speak with your tax advisor, accountant, or CPA before doing anything.

Pre-Tax or After-Tax Dollars:

Typically speaking, health insurance premiums are tax deductible with pre-tax dollars, while co-pays, deductibles, co-insurance, and prescription co-pays are usually paid with after-tax dollars. It might be a good idea for your accountant to work with your broker to come up with a tax strategy that works well with your human resources and health benefits objectives.

Employee Tax Treatment

Are the employees paying for their portion of the health insurance premium through the use of a “Section 125” premium only plan? This will allow employees to pay the health insurance premium on a pre-tax basis thereby reducing the employer payroll taxes.

You may want to consider offering a Flexible Savings Account (FSA). An FSA allows employees to pay for a portion of their un-reimbursed medical expenses on a tax-free basis.

10. Losing Money Due to Poor Administration.

We hear about it almost every day. Due to poor administration, employers neglect to advise the insurance carriers of newly terminated or newly eligible employees.

In many cases, the guidelines are rigid and clear. A simple mistake with administration may cause your company to either pay insurance on someone who is no longer with the company or it may open yourself up to liability. Had an employee been eligible for benefits, but somebody forgot to do the paperwork, your company could be liable for claims.

Liability of not setting out corporate notices

Notices may need to be communicated due to changes in coverage or policy changes. Once again, in many cases the burden of proof might be on you. If you do not notify employees of the changes you might be held accountable for the lack of notifications.

COBRA Notifications

Last but not least, in many circumstances an employee has a legal right to be notified if they are eligible to participate in the COBRA insurance program post termination. COBRA is the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. This gives employees the right to continue health insurance given certain qualifications. By not properly notifying the employee, your company is in violation of federal law and can perhaps be held accountable for claims and medical expenses incurred by the employee. By properly notifying the employee, the liability lies in the hands of the employee and the insurance company if they choose to continue coverage.

So What is Your Next Step?

It’s great that you made it this far into the article and that by itself gives you plenty of things to look at in deciding if you are making any of the above mistakes. In some cases you can change your behaviors midstream. For example, you can find out from your current carrier if there are any Value Added Benefits that you may not be aware of. You can also make sure that your company has an accurate list of employees who should be on the policy or need to be added.

Once again, Group Health Insurance is one of the largest non-producing expenses for most businesses. It is up to the business as well as their employees to maintain an active role with wellness, routine exams, and disease management programs. Insurance might be considered an expense, but when it comes down to it, health and lives are at risk.

DISCLAIMER: Information is intended as a general nature. Always consult a licensed professional before implementing anything.

Copyright© 2008 Economic Evaluation Group, Inc.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

John R. Klimchak has been in the insurance field for over 20 years. He is a licensed Insurance Consultant and a Licensed Insurance Broker. Mr. Klimchak is also the President of Economic Evaluation Group, Inc. (www.eegroup.com), a firm specializing in Group Health benefits and other related services. For a free consultation call (516) 338-2800 and reference the “Top 10 Mistakes Article”.

Our health is our best asset, if it is good our life is heaven, else it can be worst than hell. As we know that medical costs are getting higher day by day, it becomes difficult for a common man to handle the health related expenses which may arise due to serious accident or major illness. Medical insurance protects you financially by supporting you with the apt cash at such times.

Some of the benefits in applying for a medical insurance are:

Covering the treatment of cancer or other such diseases including the fees of consultants, diagnostic test and therapies, prescribed drugs.

Option to choose from a large number of recognized hospitals for higher standard of treatment.

Cover for privacy of the patient in a comfortable room in hospital while going through treatment.

Medical insurance are available to individuals and families with flexible terms and conditions. You can also apply for a group medical insurance to protect the medical interest of a group of person. Medical insurance also serves the need of a small business by covering the medical expenses of the employer and employees. International students can apply for a medical insurance to bear their medial costs during their period of education. You can go for an international medical insurance which provides you cover for any medical expenses in any part of the world. As per your requirement you can get detailed information about all such plans on the website of medical insurance providers.

It may be a mistake to blindly go for any medical insurance deal without proper research done. As suitability of these plans varies from person to person you are required to find out a deal which suits your circumstances to get the maximum benefit out of it. Large numbers of free online quotes are available for you, which you can easily study and compare to get the deal which fits your needs in the best possible manner. If you are confused about selecting medical insurance deals, you can take the help of experienced insurance analysts which will scrutinize your needs and will suggest and arrange the best deals for you. The final step is to log on the websites of insurance agencies and fill in the required information along with your query. Once the insurance provider receives your request, you will be contacted by its insurance agent for further assistance.

While going into a deal with any of the insurance provider it is recommended to carefully read the terms and conditions for the policy. This will help you in avoiding any disagreements later with the insurance provider and enable you to get the best benefit out of the medical insurance policy.

With the emphasis on organics within the food, aesthetics and health care industries, the use of green technology for diagnostic imaging evaluations is equally warranted. Therefore, infrared thermal imaging technology is an appropriate and fundamental clinical test and fits within this criteria.  As a completely non-invasive heat picture can be taken of any area of the body with a specifically designed infrared camera, a unique and supportive view of many health conditions can be easily captured.  We rely upon infrared cameras to tell us about the far reaches of the Universe.  It’s reasonable to expect that we should gain valuable information on a human subject placed only four feet away.

The assessment of the human body through thermal techniques is not new. It dates back to the ancient Egyptians, who moved their hands across the body without touching, and were able to compute information signals through the brain, based on what they were receiving. Hippocrates immersed his patients in mud, and where the area dried first was an indicator of disease.  In their understanding of health, a thermal perspective was subsequently obtained. The heat signals that were released provided important indicators and a direction for care.

The role of thermal imaging is essential for women to know about, especially in conjunction with breast examinations and mammography. Due to the highly sensitive nature of their breasts and other organs, the use of a truly non-invasive option for health evaluations should be given. This is relevant when the possible effects of repeated radiation and other invasive procedures are to be considered. 

Recently published research in the American Journal of Surgery, October 2008, described the “Effectiveness of a noninvasive digital infrared thermal imaging system in the detection of breast cancer.”  This work was conducted by the Department of Surgery, New York Presbyterian Hospital-Cornell, where they concluded that digital infrared thermal imaging “is a valuable adjunct to mammography and ultrasound, especially in women with dense breast parenchyma.”  The Department of Ob-Gyn at Northwestern University Medical School published a paper in 2001 on circadian rhythm chaos and breast cancer, and stated that even in the absence of mammographic evidence of a neoplasm or a palpable tumor, studies suggested that an abnormal thermal sign, in the light of our present knowledge of breast cancer, is ten times as important an indication as is family history data.

Any health care facility that already observes the physiological condition, either through thermometers, environmental temperature markers, or existing infrared devices, understands the importance of thermoregulation, and being able to monitor it, effectively. Modern infrared thermal imaging cameras employ the advanced use of optics, integrated circuits, and infrared detector technology.  With the assistance of image processing software, a visually unique and relevant perspective on the human subject’s condition is obtained.

There is no contact with the body, and nothing is sent into the body.  Heat signals are picked up in a very dramatic way. The images show the relative thermal distribution of a human being or animal, and give a wealth of physical data, objectively.

There has been a great amount of thermological research conducted throughout the world, for decades, on this FDA cleared test.  The results have contributed significantly to the understanding and application of this imaging method, helping in all areas of clinical health, from fetal evaluation to brain surgery. The biomedical use of infrared thermal imaging is well documented in the latest (3rd) edition of “The Biomedical Engineering Handbook; Medical Devices and Systems”; CRC, Taylor and Francis. This is considered the foremost text in biomedical engineering and provides twenty chapters on the subject.

The improvements with infrared detector technology and computerization have truly enabled this type of instrument to be placed in any facility. With the relatively low cost of equipment and efficiency of operation, digital infrared thermal imaging is a valuable tool in the diagnostic arsenal.  It’s certainly worth significant consideration by all health professionals due to its absence of impact on the environment and the subject being observed.