The purpose of supplemental health insurance is, as the name suggests, providing additional health coverage in conjunction with a primary health insurance policy. While each policy will differ, such supplemental insurance generally provides for payments on additional conditions, non-medical expenses related to treatments and to reduce the primary insurance deductible.
Some of the most relevant situations where such additional coverage should be considered are when there is a high deductible insurance policy in place.
High deductible health plans, often referred to as major medical plans, are designed for people who are happy enough to pay a large portion of their health care costs out of pocket, in return for a significantly lower premium. Generally speaking high deductible plans will require the insured person to cover $5,000 (sometimes more, sometimes less) of their health expenses before the insurance provider starts to pay. This does, however, mean that the insured person has to have a significant amount of savings to cover the deductible. To help people alleviate some of the financial risk of this high deductible they can take out supplemental insurance policies with some great benefits.
It is important to note that each policy can cover a multitude of different conditions and services and dependent on how much is covered the premium will vary. The more 
coverage people want the more it will cost. The following is a list of some of the most significant benefits:
1) Cover to reduce the deductible of the primary insurance policy
This is one of the most significant benefits of supplemental insurance, especially if the deductible is very high. For example, if a primary insurance policy has a deductible of $5,000 then the customer would have to pay for the first $5,000 of treatment costs. A supplemental policy would then reimburse the insured for some of that amount.
2) Cover for medical conditions/services not insured under the primary plan
Health insurance policies often exclude certain conditions or types of treatments. In order to gain additional coverage an insured person can gain coverage with a specifically tailored supplemental insurance. This can significantly improve the effectiveness and speed of recovery for certain conditions.
3) Cover for non-medical costs associated to treatments
In cases where treatment has to take place over longer periods of time or a significant distance away from the home there are often non-medical costs associated to a sickness or injury.
These mostly include travel costs, overnight accommodation, child care and food and refreshments. Dependent on how long a treatment lasts, these costs can very quickly become burdensome.
Supplemental health insurance policies are a great way to increase the medical conditions and treatments customers are covered for and and at the same time provide for non-medical services to be insured as well. People that are worried about the potential out of pocket costs associated to medical treatments will be able to significantly reduce that worry and ensure that their financial situation is not overburdened in such events. In times of sickness it is best to be able to focus on getting better, rather than worrying about the bills being added up.
While not insurance, discount health plans and discount dental plans can be very effective in making up gaps in your health care coverage. To check out our discount health plans, click here.
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AmeriPlan discount health and dental plans are designed to save you money while providing the health and dental care you and your family needs. Get started now and you’ll be amazed at the level of medical and dental services and the low cost.
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