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Visitors Health Insurance Primer

By: Suchi Visitors to the US can purchase visitor medical insurance plans designed specifically for them. Every plan is different, so you cannot compare them solely on cost. Before buying a plan you must research all the benefits and exclusions carefully.

1. Fixed Benefit and Comprehensive plans: Fixed benefit plans have pre defined benefit limits for each type of covered medical expense. For example, a policy with a $100,000 maximum limit may offer a maximum of $2000 for surgery, a maximum of $800 for diagnostic services (X-rays, scans) etc. Fixed Benefits Plans have the lowest premiums, but you must be aware that the benefits offered are relatively limited as compared to the Comprehensive Coverage Plans. Out of pocket costs are not pre defined. Comprehensive plans cover you up to the policy maximum and do not have individual sub limits for each expense. Out of pocket costs are pre defined. These plans are usually more expensive.

2. Co insurance: Co insurance can be defined as a preset proportional sharing of expenses between the insured and the insurance company. Plans have different co insurance percentages. Some may require little or no co insurance and some may require a high proportional payment. For example in a 70/30 co insurance rate plan, the insured must pay 30% of the eligible expenses and the insurance company pays 70%.

3. Deductible: Visitor insurance plans can have deductibles from $0 to above $2500. Al l expenses incurred up to the deductible amount chosen must be paid by the insured before any payment is made by the insurance company. Plans with high deductibles are often cheaper than those with low deductibles.

4. Coverage for pre existing conditions: Pre existing conditions are usually not covered by visitor medical insurance plans. Pre existing conditions are defined differently by each insurance company. For the plan you are looking to purchase make sure you understand how they are defined. In some cases the definition includes only those medical conditions that the insured was aware of prior to the start of the plan and was receiving treatment or medication. Some other plans may have a broader classification to include all conditions that manifested prior to the start of the plan even if the insured was not aware of their existence.

5. Plan Limit: The price of a plan also depends on the maximum amount the plan will pay for all claims for the insured. A plan that offers maximum 50K coverage will be cheaper than one that offers 100K coverage. Some plans may offer per incident/per injury maximum and some offer a maximum coverage for the entire policy period.

You must shop around and compare prices for a visitor medical plan. Make sure you are not comparing apples and oranges. Talk to a professional with experience with visitor medical plans to get the coverage you need.

Article Source: http://www.lifeweightloss.com

About the Author: Suchitra V. is a travel insurance professional. Suchitra frequently writes about visitor health insurance and she provides free tips on visitors insurance.

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