When you’ve just gone through an event leaving you without health insurance coverage, you may feel overwhelmed. Emergencies do not exclusively occur when you have health insurance. Luckily, there is an option – short term health insurance. Benefits are not the same across every insurance company, but these typically have a low cost. While not suitable as a policy to hold onto forever, it will help you in times when you’re waiting to switch to something permanent.
Why Get Temporary Insurance With a Short Term Health Insurance Plan?
Short term health insurance, often colloquially referred to as temporary insurance, is best for those in dire circumstances in which there is nowhere else to turn. For instance, someone whose employment has been terminated may not just be without health insurance, but a reliable stream of income. For this person, short-term health insurance can help during this period of uncertainty, because premiums can be as low as $55 per month.
It’s also good for someone who is waiting to join something else, but needs some sort of health coverage until the desired health insurance plan’s enrollment period begins. This can also apply to someone waiting for Medicare benefits to begin. College students attending an out-of-town university may be interested in this as well, proving that short term health insurance plans can be useful for all walks of life.
What Are The Benefits of Getting Temporary Insurance?
Benefits are dependent on the company offering the short term health insurance. A common item that short term policies cover is emergency hospitalization.
Some companies allow policyholders to seek treatments without being confined to a provider network. Others provide coverage for physical therapy, home health care, and coverage for up to three years.
This is also very affordable considering the duration of coverage, and how extensive some short term health insurance policies can be. Premiums, deductibles, copays, and coinsurance costs are often very low.
What Are The Drawbacks of Short Term Health Insurance?
Short term health insurance can be more difficult to get approved for. It’s not a guaranteed issue policy, so insurers can reject you on the basis of pre-existing conditions and current physical state. If you have questions about short term health insurance options get in touch with the The Burkes Group team today.
When you sign up, you’ll have to answer a questionnaire that asks for information pertaining to pre-existing conditions, body weight, whether you’re enrolled in another policy, and Medicaid eligibility. You can be rejected because of having unfavorable answers to these questions.
Common items absent from short term health insurance include mental health services, maternity services, and prescription medications.
Your coverage may also be delayed, as some short term health insurance plans have a waiting period before benefits begin.