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Hospital indemnity insurance (also known as supplemental hospitalization or hospital insurance, hospital cash plans, healthcare indemnity, medical indemnity, health benefit indemnity, fixed indemnity health insurance, indemnity medical plan, or health benefit indemnity insurance) are policies for individuals and families that will pay a set amount of money when you receive covered medical services.
Basically, it’s cash you can use to help cover medical expenses or lost income when a covered healthcare emergency or illness strikes.
Since the money is paid directly to you, it can also be used to pay bills like the mortgage, childcare, or whatever you need dollars to cover your expenses. It is best used as a supplement to a major medical health plan. Alongside financial protection, the low-cost plans we offer also include non-insurance healthcare services like telemedicine access and prescription drug discounts to help fill gaps in coverage. Many purchasers of hospital indemnity insurance plans comment that the primary value of the plans are the flexibility to use the plan payouts without restrictions. The benefit can be used to pay your deductible or to help cover lost wages while you were ill. Bottom line is that it’s your choice how to use it.
Hospital indemnity insurance coverage works differently than the short term health insurance or Obamacare health plans most consumers are familiar with. Health benefit indemnity insurance plans mostly offer first-dollar benefits. That means there generally are no deductibles, coinsurance or copays that are required to be paid out of pocket before the insurance company begins paying for medical services. The insurance carrier begins paying right away for your first service, allowing you to avoid dipping into checking or savings accounts for healthcare related expenses. Indemnity insurance is a supplement to, not a replacement for, major medical insurance.
Like all forms of insurance, you should shop for healthcare coverage based on your medical needs, the insurance plan’s benefits plus monthly premiums, and the cost sharing requirements. The key plan benefits to look for in a hospital insurance indemnity quote (which include emergency care services) are:
If you have questions about whether a health benefit indemnity insurance plan is right for your current situation, you can speak with a licensed health insurance agent by calling 800-821-3054.
It depends on your situation! A primary benefit of hospital indemnity insurance plan coverage is that most do not have a deductible or coinsurance: you get immediate relief from medical related expenses beginning day one. If your doctor or facility charges more than the fixed amount your major medical insurance pays, you are responsible for the remainder of the bill. An indemnity plan helps cover that financial gap. If that sounds good, maybe you do need one!
Understanding that you get additional financial relief from medical bills makes this type of affordable supplemental coverage well-suited for individuals and families who have lower income or don’t have a large amount in savings for a rainy day. According to Bankrate, only 40% of Americans have $1,000 saved to pay a surprise medical bill. In fact, medical bankruptcy is the root cause of 66.5% of all bankruptcies each year. That means about 530,000 Americans file for medical bankruptcy during the course of 12 months - a staggering number considering the stressful circumstances that lead people to the outcome.
Some examples of individuals who might want to consider indemnity plan insurance include:
Hospital indemnity insurance plans are given that title because they supplement major medical hospital benefits for sudden emergencies. Hospitalization insurance plans are meant to provide financial relief for charges that can be part of an in-patient hospital stay. Benefits can include fixed payments for services such as:
Other benefits included in most fixed indemnity health insurance plans are a set number of doctor office visits per coverage period and on some plans, a one-time wellness office check.
A final advantage of hospital indemnity insurance is the lack of network requirements. When you have an open, all-access arrangement, you are not tied to a network of contracted doctors. You don’t need to worry about coordinating your indemnity plan with your major medical plan’s network. With the fixed dollar amount per service system of a hospital indemnity plan, you get to use the money to pay medical bills or other bills that you’ve incurred due to sickness or injury. The money is yours to keep and use as you see fit.
Hospital indemnity insurance plans are not major medical insurance and they don’t include the 10 essential health benefits that are required for Obamacare plans. They are designed to supplement major medical insurance and offer more protection if you think they’re appropriate for your situation, get an online quote now!
SHORT TERM HEALTH INSURANCE, INDEMNITY INSURANCE , SUPPLEMENTAL INSURANCE AND CANCER INSURANCE ARE INSURANCE OUTSIDE OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT (OBAMACARE). THESE PRODUCTS TYPICALLY DO NOT COVER PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS AND DO NOT INCLUDE ALL TEN OF THE MINIMUM ESSENTIAL BENEFITS OF OBAMACARE. INDEMNITY, SUPPLEMENTAL AND CANCER INSURANCE ARE DESIGNED TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL BENEFITS TO MAJOR MEDICAL INSURANCE.
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