Health Insurance

This article is a part of Wikinvest's Personal Finance section and Guide to Investing. Please contribute or edit to improve it.

TOP CONTRIBUTORS

Vikram Parsani

Types of Coverage

Private Coverage

Job-Based Coverage

Individual Policies

Association Health Plans

Consumer Driven Health Plans

Government-Funded Coverage

Medicare

Medicare is a federal health insurance program for: a) individuals aged 65 years and above; b) individuals under the age of 65 with certain disabilities; or c) or individuals with end-stage renal disease. There are three types of Medicare plans:

• Original Medicare Plan, which consists of two parts:
  • Hospital Insurance (Part A): This part pays for inpatient care at public hospitals, critical access hospitals (small facilities that give limited inpatient and outpatient services to people in rural areas), skilled nursing facilities (not custodial or long-term care) as well as hospice care and some home health care. All individuals eligible for Medicare are enrolled automatically and free of charge in Part A.
  • Medical Insurance (Part B): This part pays for doctor visits, outpatient hospital care and other necessary medical services not covered by Part A, such as physical and occupational therapy, and some home health care. Part B is optional and, in 2008, most beneficiaries paid monthly insurance premiums of $96.40. Beneficiaries must also pay an annual deductible before Part B coverage kicks in.

2008 Part B Monthly Insurance Premiums	Yearly Income (Single Individual)	Yearly Income (Married Couple)	Yearly Income (Married Individual)
$96.40	$82,000 or less	$164,000 or less	$82,000 or less
$122.20	$82,001 - $102,000	$164,001 - $204,000	NA
$160.90	$102,001 - $153,000	$204,001 - $306,000	NA
$199.70	$153,001 - $205,000	$306,001 - $410,000	$82,001 - $123,000
$238.40	above $205,000	above $410,000	above $123,000

• Medicare Advantage Plans (Part C), formerly known as Medicare+Choice, are private health insurance plans under the Medicare program. These plans pay for more medical services than the Original Medicare Plan by packaging Part A, Part B and additional coverage into one convenient bundle. Part C is optional and beneficiaries often pay higher monthly insurances premiums, but lower deductibles, than those required for Part B. Medicare Advantage is only offered in certain parts of the country and includes HMO Plans, PPO Plans, Medicare Private FFS Plans, Medicare MSA Plans or Medicare Special Needs Plans.
• Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Part D) add prescription drug coverage to the Original Medicare Plan, Medicare MSA Plans, some Medicare Cost Plans and some Medicare Private FFS Plans. Each plan is run by a private company and, hence, varies slightly from other plans that fall under Part D. However, all such plans conform to standards set by the federal goverment. Part D is optional and beneficiaries pay monthly insurance premiums and an annual deductible in exchange for a large degree of flexibility in choosing what drugs need to be covered by these plans.

Medicaid

State High Risk Pools

Trends

Number Uninsured and Uninsured Rate (1987-2007)

Difference in 2-Year-Average Uninsured Rates by State (2006-2007)