| 4. Concerning your right to sue the insurance company if they
dont come thru, in most cases you will collect only the cost of
the service they refused to provide. Consider the statistical
implications of this. Say the company provides to provide 3
treatments you need, because theyre experimental or whatever.
You survive the first two, but lack of the 3rd kills you. If your
heirs sue and win, they will recover only the cost of that 3rd
treatment that should have been performed. This makes it just
good business for the company to pay as little as it can.
Remember that the companys legal duty is to make as much money as
possible for its shareholders. Some are quite successful; one of
the richest men in the US a few decades back got that way by
selling insurance policies to poor people. |
| What type of insurance should you get? Consider only level term
insurance. Its a pure and simple death benefit with no savings attached
(no tax advantages). Premiums are guaranteed for the term of the policy.
You should consider a term policy for the number of remaining years
until retirement. For example, if you are now 35 you should consider a
30-year level term policy. If you are 45 years of age, consider a
20-year plan. One rule of thumb is to take out a policy amount that is
at least 10 times greater than your annual income. If you currently make
$25,000 per year - take out a $250,000 policy. Keep that policy in mind
as your income increases through the years. |
| My new insurance company wants a letter to prove previous coverage
dates
because they back charged my new employer with a month of coverage for
which I was already covered by my previous employer. The new Insurance
Co. insists that the proof of insurance letter is required by law and
must come from my previous Insurance Co. |
| Marcel Popescu wrote: Why should the healthy
people pay the insurance of the sick ones? Do you think that a
stunt man and a housewife should pay the same insurance rates? |
| Note that its often illegal for the doctor to offer you, as an
insured patient, a discount. He cannot waive the copayment, even
if he wants. However, in the past, some hospitals were getting
secret discounts from the insurors, even beyond the official
discounts. Anyone in the insurance industry care to comment on
whether this still occurs? |
