The Texas health insurance marketplace has been flooded with various types of health insurance policies over the last 18 months. One of the most misunderstood policy types is catastrophic health insurance. The misconceptions are many, but the weirdest myth revolves around "qualifying" for a catastrophic health insurance policy. What does that even mean?
What Is A Catastrophic Health Insurance Policy?
A catastrophic health insurance policy is actually a combination of three different individual health insurance policies. It does not require a huge deductible to qualify. In fact, the best catastrophic health insurance policies do not have large deductibles. So what are those three individual policies? I'm glad you asked.
- Critical Illness is a health insurance policy that will cover you for the major illnesses that often land us in the hospital. Are you worried about the costs of cancer, stroke, or heart attack treatment? This is the policy that covers you on that front and can be done with deductibles below $5,000 on a regular basis.
- Accident is a health insurance policy that will cover you for the costs associated with the treatment associated with the results of an accident to you. It could be falling off a ladder, or skiing accident, or maybe you were in a car wreck. You understand the extreme costs of the emergency room, surgeries, and being in the hospital. This makes sure that you are covered world wide.
- Hospital Indemnity is a cash reimbursement policy that fills in your out of pocket costs associated with the treatment that comes with the events that lead to you using the health insurance policies listed above. There are always deductibles, co-insurance, or co-pays. The indemnity policy puts cash back in your pocket to help cover those.
That's Great. How Do I Qualify For This Catastrophic Health Insurance Policy?
The great news is that qualifications are actually not as complex as you often hear people claim. The most frequent myths to qualification that we have heard are below.
- You Have To Be Under 30
- You Have To Have Perfect Health
- You Can't Have Kids
- You Need A Hardship Exemption
- You Qualify For Medicaid
First off, catastrophic health insurance is available to anyone under the age of 65. Once you qualify for Medicare, it becomes tough to find a policy. However, outside of that you can absolutely obtain coverage. Even for your children.
Your financial status is irrelevant to your ability to obtain coverage. You may qualify for medicaid, subsidies for Exchange policies, or be a seven figure CEO. Catastrophic health insurance works for people of all walks of life. While the health insurance policies are an incredibly cost effective form of health insurance, the ability to use them is not dictated by the size of your bank account. Assuming you can afford the monthly premium.
The final piece to this puzzle of myths revolves around your health condition. Catastrophic health insurance policies are underwritten policies, which means that you are subject to the scrutiny of "pre-existing conditions". However, the good news is that many conditions that knock you out of other coverage can be covered by a catastrophic health policy. If you had cancer two years ago, obtaining coverage will be difficult. If you manage high blood pressure with a low dose medication, diet, and exercise you will likely be fine. But this is the one piece of information that we will need to discuss when evaluating your options.
How Do I Get Started?
Insurance for Texans works with multiple companies that provide these catastrophic policies. As an independent insurance agency, we work with you to determine what you actually need and how to properly protect it for you. It may be that your situation calls for something other than a catastrophic health insurance plan, or that one company works better than another. To find out how it works, simply click the button below to speak with one of our agents.
