What Are Your Health Plan Choices?
California Medical Insurance

Do you know what your choices are for buying California medical insurance? Plans are different and it is important for you to research the California medical insurance plan that best fits the needs of you and your family. You need to consider the cost, and what coverage each plans offer. You also need to know how easy it will be to get services, what doctors are available and how much you will need to pay out-of-pocket. As plans change year by year, it is important to know the facts about the California medical insurance plans you are considering.

California medical insurance can be described as either managed care, or indemnity. Indemnity is when you pay a fee for service. They also differ in other ways. They both require you to pay a basic premium that your employer will pay to have coverage. Additional payments may be required and you should consider what the total cost will be to you and your family before deciding which California medical insurance you want.

Indemnity and managed care are different in their approaches. The main differences are the choice of health care providers, what costs must be paid by the insured, and how bills are paid. Indemnity plans will offer a broader selection of doctors and specialists to choose from but will only pay their share of the bill after they receive it. The indemnity plan will allow you a larger selection of health care providers to choose from and they will pay a portion of the bill that is sent to them. Normally the percentage is 80 percent of any costs that are within the normal range of charges. You must meet a small deductible and if there are charges that are higher than the ordinary, you are responsible for paying the difference. If you have an indemnity California medical insurance plan it may not pay for services involving preventive care, but will pay for medical tests and prescription medications.

California medical insurance managed care plan have agreements with doctors, hospitals and other health care providers to provide their services at a reduced cost to members. If you have a managed care plan you will have less paperwork and fewer out-of-pocket expenses. You will have a larger choice of heath care professionals if you have a managed care plan.

If you have chosen a California medical insurance managed care plan, you may choose to go to a doctor or specialist that is not in the network but you will pay usually pay more. You will need to make up the difference between what the doctor charges and what the plan pays. Most doctors who take part in managed care will bill the insurance company and then “write off” the difference between their rates and what the plan pays. No matter which California medical insurance plan you choose, indemnity or managed care, you will want to calculate the eventual total cost of your family’s health care.