What types of health insurance plan are there?

Question

There are two types of health insurance that I know of.

Indemnity (fee for service or traditional) and manged care (like

HMOs).


What are the differences between the two and

what types of plans are listed under these two groups?

Answer 1

The are also PPOs (preferred provider organizations) and POS (point of sale). The HMO is the most restrictive as far as networks, then come the POS, PPO, and Indemnity is the most open as well as the most expensive.

Here are the basics, for more detail and to find the best plan for you visit a local independent agent.

With an HMO you must use a doctor in the network and must get a referral from the primary care doctor to see a specialists. The PPO also has a network but you don't need a referral and can go outside of the network if you desire, however, your costs will be higher. The POS is a blend of the HMO and PPO. There is a network and you must get a referral if you see a specialists but you can go outside of the network. The indemnity has the most freedom because there is no network and you don't need any referrals.

Answer 2

I'm great on using my yellow pages in the phone book for a lot of information I need on lots of things. Why don't you look under health ins. cos. & see what you can find & some of the different insurances that are listed. Give them a call, & I'm sure you can get lots of info just from a phone call. Always have a pad & pen handy when making these calls.
For some reason I would steer away from HMOs. I don't know why, but a lot of cos. & Drs. don't accept HMO insurances. That I CAN tell you, but I don't know the reasons. But I've seen a lot of "HMO is not accepted".
Hope that gives you a start anyway...