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California Health Insurance > College Students and Young Adults > Advice for Graduate Students
Advice for Graduate Students Seeking Health Insurance in CaliforniaGraduate students are older than undergraduates and usually have different health insurance needs. Your needs might include
With age come more aches and pains. Doctors, prescription medicine and occasional hospital stays are not an abstract concept to grad students. You may have had a serious illness or had a friend who got sick and tested the limits of your university’s health insurance plan. You may need no convincing to purchase a comprehensive, permanent, individual or family health insurance plan. You likely have more resources to purchase a better policy than an undergrad. For advice about finding a good plan, check out these videos on our homepage and these charts.
If you’re married and your spouse needs health insurance coverage then you have a few options. You can both enroll on the same policy. Usually the insurance companies use the age of the younger spouse to determine rates. So, if there is a big age difference between you and your spouse, this could save you some money. Also, many of the family policies have family deductible maximums and Out-of-Pocket (OOP) limits that might help. Usually, the benefit of family deductible and OOP limits accrues to families with 3 or more members. One thing to consider is that if you are planning to have a baby or to adopt a child soon you may save some money because of the combined family limits. One trend in the individual and family health insurance market is that many of the policies are “individual only” and do not cover more than one person. This means that even if you are married you would be considered separately if you enroll on one of these plans. Call us if you’re not sure which type of policy you’re considering.
The trend in individual and family health insurance in California is to whittle down the benefits and make the monthly premium, or cost, as low as possible. Consequently, insurance companies offer many plans which do not include maternity coverage. When you get a quote for health insurance on BenefitsCafe.com you can request to include plans with maternity coverage. These are usually a bit more expensive. Also, you want to make sure that you enroll on a plan that is not “individual only” because you want to be able to add a new born child to either the mother’s or father’s health insurance plan. This is important in case there is a complication with the pregnancy and the new-born child needs medical treatment after birth. You don’t want to get caught by having a policy to which no family member can be added.
You should evaluate the cost of coverage for your entire family on one plan and also separately. If you cover your family under separate policies you may save a considerable amount on monthly premium. You must understand that if everyone in your family gets very sick or has a serious accident and reaches the Out-Of-Pocket (OOP) limit you could end up spending A LOT of money. So, make sure you evaluate the worst case situation and know what risks you are taking on. This comparison chart can help. Children who are relatively healthy generally have minor medical needs – beyond check ups and vaccinations. Accordingly, you may want to get a high deductible plan for your child or children. The high deductible means that you will pay for minor services out of your pocket and only have the insurance plan for catastrophic illness or injury. You’ll get the provider discounts that the health insurance company has negotiated for its members. By saving money on your children’s policy you may free up some money to afford a more comprehensive policy for you and your spouse.
You may find this article and and chart helpful when selecting a plan: help you compare a health insurance plan and comparison chart. Also, you may want to read this article on where to start when selecting a health insurance plan. If you’re ready, get a personalized California health insurance quote. The more you learn about health insurance the more you will save. By understanding your coverage you will know how to use your plan. We’re here to help and contact us for advice and assistance. When you apply through BenefitsCafe.com we’ll be your agent at no extra cost. As your agent we’ll be able to help you should you ever have a question or problem. Article date June 8, 2009 |
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