Monday, May 4, 2009

Affordable Student Health Insurance - Where to Get It By Brian Stevens and Stacey Schifferdecker

As a college student you're probable living close to the financial edge, but affordable student health insurance is something you should always try to include in your budget. But where can someone struggling to pay college tuition find a cheap plan to cover medical costs?

Check Your Parents' Policies

Before venturing out to buy health insurance, you should always check to make sure you aren't still covered by your parents' policies. Many insurance plans cover full-time students up to age 22. Staying on a parental plan is generally the least expensive option for health insurance.

Focus on Major Medical

If a parental policy is not an option and you're in good health, you should focus on getting a policy that offers major medical coverage. Also called a catastrophic policy, a major-medical policy will provide coverage for accidents and major illnesses at a low price - sometimes as little as $30 a month.

Such policies won't cover routine check-ups but will pay a significant portion of the medical bills following an accident or illness. Items that a major medical policy usually cover include hospitalization, surgery, home health care, prescriptions, diagnostic work, etc.

For the lowest possible premium, your deductible should be set as high as possible. Just don't set it so high that you can't afford to pay it if necessary.

Comprehensive Coverage

If you need comprehensive medical coverage that includes ongoing health care, then a managed health care plan such as an HMO (health maintenance organization) or a PPO (preferred provider plan) will be your least expensive option.

Shop Around for the Best Price

The key to getting the cheapest rate on health insurance is to get several quotes to compare. The quickest and easiest way to do that is to go online to an insurance comparison website. At these sites you type in your insurance information on a simple online form, then you'll receive quotes from several A-rated companies which you can compare.

Visit http://www.LowerRateQuotes.com/health-insurance.html or click on the following link to get affordable student health insurance quotes from top-rated companies and see how much you can save. You can get more tips and advice in their Articles section, and get answers to your questions from an insurance expert by using their online chat service.

The authors, Brian Stevens and Stacey Schifferdecker, have spent 30 years in the insurance and finance industries, and have written numerous articles on where to get affordable student health insurance.

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