Low Income Health Insurance - Some Options For People on a Tight Budget

Medical care is extremely expensive and without health insurance, getting the care you need when you need it can be very difficult. People with health insurance get much better care than the uninsured do, they also get that care in a more timely fashion. For people that need coverage but simply can't afford it, there are some low income health insurance options available.

One option to consider would be a high deductible health plan also known as catastrophic health insurance. When your deductibles are high your monthly payments will be much lower. The problem is that the deductibles are so high that things like regular doctors visits and checkups would not be covered because paying for a doctors visit out of pocket would be less than paying the deductible for this type of plan. This type of plan is more for things like surgery, hospitalization, and other "catastrophic" incidents that would be very expensive.


One way to help pay for your less expensive and more common medical needs would be to set up a health savings account. A health savings account or HSA is a good way to save money on health insurance and works well in conjunction with a high deductible health plan. An HSA is like a savings account that is earmarked for health care expenses. Money would be taken out of your paycheck and deposited into the account at the end of each pay period. The money that goes into the HSA is free from any federal income tax and because it is taken out of your pay check it lowers your taxable income.

The money in an HSA can be taken out to pay for medical expenses without paying any taxes on the money. At age 65 the money in the account can be taken out for any reason at any time without any penalties.

Setting up a health savings account in conjunction with a high deductible health plan can be a good option for low income health insurance but it's not for everyone. A high deductible plan protects you in case of serious illness or injury and a health savings account helps lower the cost of occasional doctors visits but, if you have some type of chronic illness or require frequent doctors visits for any reason then you would be better served by a more traditional health insurance plan.

The best way to save money on any type of health insurance is to do some comparison shopping. You can get multiple quotes online from a number of different providers in just a few minutes and doing so would allow you to quickly and easily find the coverage you need at the best possible price