Health Insurance Plans – Which Type Is For Me?

A lot has happened in my life the past eight months, which has led me to making some important decisions. For nearly seven years I lived in the Pacific Northwest; receiving my college education and working several different professional jobs. There came a point this past Fall when I realized that I was ready for a change. I was seeking bigger and brighter things in my life, and the dreary Northwest was not providing me the opportunities I was seeking. I left my job, packed my SUV with all of my possessions (yes, amazingly I fit everything in and on top of my car), and said good bye to my friends. It was California or Bust!

It wasn’t like this was a totally risky or “out of the blue” move. I had spent my childhood in Northern California and a large portion of my family still resides there. During early winter I moved down to the Sacramento area and began the hunt for job in the marketing field. It wasn’t long before I landed a great position with an established company. As in with most new jobs you are given thick offer packets containing all the information regarding the company, government documents and participating insurance company information. That’s when it hit me; I had never really made any long term decisions regarding my healthcare coverage. I was covered under my parents insurance until I turned 25 and after that I purchased just major medical insurance on my own, covering myself only in case of a major injury or hospitalization. It was now time to sit down and figure which health insurance plan was going to fit my current lifestyle.

Where do I start? Being “tech” savvy, the first place I looked was the Internet. I was overwhelmed by the amount of health insurance information out there. There were so many options; HMO, PPO, Point-Of-Service and Indemnity. Each of the different health plans has its pros and cons. It’s a matter of finding which one fits your needs. I was fortunate to run across an article titled, “Health Plans- What’s the Difference”

The article laid out very simply the basic differences in the health plans. I was mainly looking for the differences between an HMO and PPO
- HMO: Low cost, easy/simple paperwork, physician refers you to specialists.
- PPO: Costs more, greater flexibility in the doctors you can see.
After careful thought and research I decided to go with the HMO plan that was being offered by my employer. It meets all my medical needs and so far has been a pretty good choice.

I would highly recommend visiting InsWeb’s Learning Center to read more of the informative articles they have regarding health and other insurance services.