An Introduction To Short Term Medical Insurance

If you have left college recently you might find that you are not covered any longer by your parent’s medical insurance policy and will have to look for cover until you start a job and fall within your employer’s healthcare scheme. Similarly, if you have recently started work, you might find that your employer requires you to work for a few weeks or months before becoming eligible to join his medical insurance scheme. Of course these are just two of the many reasons that lead to a need for short term health insurance coverage.

But what is interim health insurance coverage?

As its name implies, it is medical insurance which provides cover for a short time to let you maintain cover while moving between permanent health insurance plans. Cover is typically issued for anything from one month to one year, although a lot of companies nowadays restrict cover to a maximum period of six months. In the majority of cases insurers also appreciate that it can be difficult to know precisely how long you are going to need temporary cover for and so are usually flexible in permitting you to extend cover past the original expiry date if necessary.

Temporary medical insurance plans normally provide similar cover to that of permanent plans although there are a number of important differences.

Policies are usually strictly indemnity policies and do not cover you for preventative treatments, like check-ups, and will also exclude optical and dental coverage. Existing medical conditions and work-related injury or illness are also generally excluded.

A temporary health insurance plan will normally cover you for emergency medical care, medicines, hospital and intensive care treatment, laboratory and x-ray work, ambulance care and, sometimes, in-home medical care. 

How do you go about getting a short term health insurance policy?

Your first step should be to decide how long you need cover for and when you want it to begin. You then need to locate an agent who specializes in temporary health insurance.

Study any plans offered with care and pay special attention to any exclusion clauses. Do not be afraid to ask questions if there is something which you do not understand or are concerned about. In addition, review any application and ensure that your personal information is correct before signing it. Lastly, do not forget to retain a copy of the paperwork for your own records.   

The cost of a temporary medical insurance policy will vary according to the type of coverage that you select. However, you can keep the cost down by opting to have a high deductible added to the plan (the sum of money which you must pay towards your medical bills before the plan starts to pay out) with an equal co-insurance option (the split of each bill after the deductible has been met between you and the insurer) instead of the usual 80/20 ratio.

Also, do not forget that there are a number of extras that you might want to consider, depending on your particular circumstances. For example, with the high cost of prescription medication you could be better off buying coverage rather than leaving it off. 

The most important thing is to remember to read through any short term health insurance policy very carefully and ensure you are getting the coverage which you want and which you will be paying for.