four prescriptions. Zero dollars out of pocket.
It does not get any better than that, right?
Actually, some times it does. In fact, if you are paying nothing for prescriptions by July, you have likely had some significant medical expenses in the first six months of the year. Fortunately, family health care plans often have maximum out of pocket amounts. Once those maximums have been met, many of the other things the family needs are then free. And while that might sound like an ideal situation, the reality is that reaching the maximum in the first six months of the year was likely financially stressful.
The Growing Number of People with Insurance Is Changing the Face of Healthcare in America
REcent legislation has made it so that far more Americans now have access to medical insurance. And while many agree that the overall benefits of this insurance expansion are good, the growing pains of a nation adjusting to this increase has been both confusing and frustrating at times. Family care providers who may have been easy to get an appointment with may now be more busy. Simple office visits that used to have no co-pay amounts may now carry a small fee for every visit.
As consumers adjust to the new rules, regulations, and guidelines, however, it is still important to use preventative health measures in an attempt to avoid larger health concerns in the future. Family health care plans, although they may have been restructured, still offer covered visits that help their clients succeed at these preventative health goals.
Whether you are adjusting to changes in a former plan or reaping the benefits of first time insurance coverage, it is always important to make wise choices when you are faced with emergency or selective health care needs. Patients must consider, for instance where to go in the event of a possible broken bone or other serious injury. And while the emergency room may seem like a logical choice, many families find out later that the decision to go to a full service hospital emergency room for a broken bone or an after hours unexplained fever can be a costly one.
Although family health care plans are taken at emergencies rooms across the country, the services provided there can be more expensive and actually take longer to receive. If you are not, for instance, in a real health emergency, you may have to wait while the emergency room staff cares for more critical patients. And while it might seem logical to visit a family physician or pediatrician to get this year’s flu shot, free walk in clinics may be able to get you the shot faster and for a less expensive co-pay.
Walk in clinics and urgent care facilities are often the most affordable health care options. Additionally, these locations can also serve their clients faster and more conveniently. With their extended hours, they are can accommodate evening and weekend appointments which simply are not an option at primary care provider locations.
Even Patients Need to Make Wise Choices When They Are Selecting Health Care Services
Most Americans are good about being consumers and advocating for themselves when they are shopping for cars, purchasing furniture, and selecting a home. Even grocery store shopping, clothing purchases, and car maintenance decisions are approached with the eye and the mind of a consumer. When it comes to making to using home health care plans, however, something happens to many people. Once they are put in the position of being a patient, they often forget that many times they also have the right to be a consumer as well.
For instance, even if the pharmacist does not make the recommendation, medical consumers are allowed to ask if there is a generic that is available and less affordable. In fact, when the doctor is writing a prescription it is perfectly fine to ask if the doctor knows the cost of the drug that is being prescribed and if a less expensive option is available. This simple question, in fact, may the key to a few sample packs.
As America’s family health care plans change and expand, it is important for patients to know they can be consumers as well, especially when deciding where to go for the care that they need.