Medicare is a government-funded health care program for individuals who are at least 65 years old or who have certain health problems or disabilities. Medicare is comprised of four separate parts, each of which provides health coverage for specific services.

Applying for individual health insurance can be an exhausting and exhaustive procedure. The applications ask questions extending into many areas of your life and your family and personal health history. Even though the process may seem confusing, you must fill the paperwork out accurately and completely or your request for health coverage may be denied.

Individual health insurance can be extremely expensive, particularly if you have any pre-existing conditions or are purchasing coverage for your entire family. With record numbers of unemployment and underemployment, many people are simply no longer able to afford health coverage any longer. If you are among them, you should know you have options.

Medicaid is a means-tested, government-funded health insurance program that currently provides coverage to more than 60 million people across the country. In California, this individual and family health insurance program is called Medi-Cal.

In order to qualify for Medicaid, families must earn up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, which was $29,700 for a family of four in 2011. States may expand coverage at their discretion to those earning above this level.

If you are like most Americans, you are looking for ways to reduce your costs for health care. One way you can do so is by taking advantage of the non-smoker discount. According to the CDC, tobacco is responsible for more deaths than motor vehicle crashes, suicides, murders, and even illegal drug use. It increases an individual’s risks for heart disease, cancer, aneurysm, and emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The health costs associated with these conditions can be astronomical, leading personal health insurance companies to offer discounts to non-smokers.

When a married couple or domestic partners have health coverage through work, they can maximize their benefits by signing their child or children up for both plans. However, one plan will generally be designated as primary coverage and cover health expenses up to that plan’s limits. The second parent’s plan will be considered secondary coverage and cover the remaining portion of the bill to its limits.

Numerous studies have linked oral health to physical health. Dental health coverage can help defray some of the costs associated with maintaining your oral health. You have two options when it comes to dental coverage: dental insurance and dental discount plans. What is the difference between the two?

More people are seeking ways to reduce the expenses associated with their personal health insurance. The low premiums of high-deductible health plans can be very attractive for this very reason. Unfortunately, while high-deductible health plans, or HDHPs, can be a great option for some people, they are not appropriate for everyone or every family.

If you have been shopping for the right health insurance plan for yourself or your family, you may be astounded by all the options available today. Group health insurance, HMOs, PPOs, POS plans, indemnity health plans, and high-deductible plans all offer their subscribers something different. While each has pros and cons, a high-deductible-health plan is often attractive to those who are lower income, self-employed, or who for other reasons prefer the generally low monthly premiums of a high-deductible plan.

COBRA is an acronym that means Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. It refers to a provision in the 1985 law that provides for the continuation of health coverage benefits after an individual has become unemployed.

Businesses that are seeking to provide health insurance for their employees are increasingly trying to control their costs while improving flexibility. One way they may be able to do so is through self-funded employee health insurance plans. A self-funded plan is one in which the business or employer itself funds, manages, and administers the health benefits of the plan. A self-funded plan is governed by federal rather than state law.

According to a recent UCLA Center for Health Policy Research survey, more than eight million Californians, or nearly one out of four, is uninsured. Thanks to high levels of unemployment and the recession, many may have had to choose between paying for basic needs and paying for health insurance. Unfortunately, living without health coverage can leave you and your family even more financially vulnerable in the instance of a health catastrophe. That’s where catastrophic health insurance can help.

Regular health care is crucial to your child’s health. Well-child doctor’s visits may include checkups to look for signs of illness and immunizations to prevent communicable diseases. Your child’s physical, behavioral, and cognitive development will be assessed to ensure it is on track. Your child’s primary care physician may also include nutrition or safety counseling as well.

Women who are planning to have children will need to check the terms of their health insurance plan to ensure maternity benefits are covered. In most cases, maternity benefits must be included as an extra benefit or rider since they rarely are a standard feature of a basic insurance plan.

As the saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” When it comes to your health, this saying may be doubly true.

Expenses associated with cardiovascular disease alone are expected to rise to $800 billion a year by 2030, according to the American Heart Association. Early treatment of the risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure, can reduce the costs associated with this condition.

When your kids head off to college, health insurance may be the last thing on their minds. It is probably not the last thing on yours, however. You may be wondering whether your family health insurance policy will continue to cover them or whether you will need to purchase a new policy. Could student health insurance be the best choice for your kids?

If you are searching for an affordable alternative to traditional health insurance in California, you may be interested in short-term health insurance. Short term-health insurance provides basic health coverage for a comparatively low dollar amount, often a mere fraction of what you might pay for traditional health insurance. Short-term policies can prevent a lapse in coverage or provide an extra level of coverage for those with limited benefits under an employee health insurance plan.

Employers who sponsor health coverage for their employees and their employees’ dependents will realize many associated benefits. Appealing benefits packages can attract and keep top employees, and employee health insurance can play a prominent role in the benefits you offer. Many Americans today are covered by group health insurance. A group plan allows employers to split the costs of their premiums with their employees while granting benefits to the employer as well.

Managed care plans are some of the most affordable health insurance options available in California today. Most people will choose between one of two types of managed care plans: HMO health insurance and PPO health insurance.

Group health insurance can be an attractive benefit for your employees, but it can be a benefit for your business as well. Unlike individual health insurance plans, group health insurance premiums plans are tax deductible under some circumstances. They also tend to be less expensive than individual plans since the risk is spread out over a larger pool of participants.

Prescription medications may be an expensive part of your health care, particularly if you take more than one. You may be able to save substantially if you are able to use generic medications instead of name brands. Many health insurance providers provide coverage at a greater level for generic drugs than for name brand drugs, allowing you to save even more.

The cost of your health insurance policy is based on many factors. When you have a group health insurance policy through your employer or other group, your insurer bases the price of the policy on the risk factors of the entire group being insured. Coverage may also be broad and include benefits you don’t need, such as maternity and prescription drugs.

Family health insurance provides preventative health care for the entire family. You and your family can take advantage of regular visits with primary care physicians or specialists, lab work and X-rays, and you may even have prescription drug coverage through your health insurance. You may be wondering, though, can your children over 18 be insured on your family policy?

Being self-employed has many benefits. You are your own boss, create your own schedule, and are paid for doing what you love most. Unfortunately, when you work for yourself you do not have the same types of tangible benefits you would when working for an employer, such as employee health insurance. You may be wondering, then, how can you get affordable family health insurance if you are self-employed?

You have a lot of options when it comes to shopping for health insurance. One of the most popular choices in California today is the managed care plan. Managed care plans take a unique approach to health care by contracting with health care providers and standardizing a certain level of care in order to control their costs as well as their members’ costs.

HMO and PPO health insurance managed care plans have created health plan networks in an effort to combat the rising costs of health insurance. By sticking within a specified group of health care providers or facilities, you will generally enjoy reduced out-of-pocket expenses, copayments, and other associated costs.

An HSA, or health savings account, is a special savings account that can help you save pre-tax dollars to pay for certain qualified medical expenses associated with your individual or family health insurance plan. Your employer can even contribute funds to your group health insurance HSA, providing a valuable source of funds beyond your own contributions and any interest your HSA account earns.

The rising costs associated with health care seem to be on everyone’s minds lately. If you’ve been finding it increasingly difficult to meet the expenses associated with your health insurance plan, you may benefit from learning more about HSAs. An HSA may be able to help you afford many of the out-of-pocket expenses associated with your qualified health insurance plan.

Are you shopping for individual health insurance? You may notice a number of new or unfamiliar terms, such as copayments, co-insurance, and premiums. Understanding each of these terms can ensure you get the policy that’s right for you while helping you avoid unpleasant billing surprises.