Health Care Insurance

Why should I purchase health insurance when I'm able to get free care at a Free Health Clinic?
Free clinics are helpful for basic care and emergencies, but they are not equipped for all necessary types of testing, specialist care and surgical procedures. If you are diagnosed with a condition that requires surgery or expensive medical tests you will be responsible for the cost of your care. Even if you receive minor surgery, it may cost you several thousand dollars. Despite the numerous resources available at the a Clinic, it cannot provide all the health services you may need.

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If I need an expensive procedure, I'll get health insurance then.
If you receive costly medical care within the first 12 months of getting health insurance, you may be required to PAY FOR YOUR CARE WITH YOUR OWN MONEY! Insurance companies do not have to cover pre-existing medical conditions (anything you've been diagnosed with or treated for in the previous six-months) for up to one year from the start of the policy. In order to avoid such a waiting period, once you get insurance you should always maintain it. As long as there is not a gap of more than 63 days between health insurance plans, you are protected.

Note: If your income is less than $9,310 a year, then you may qualify for Family Health Plus or Medicaid. These government-subsidized programs cannot impose a pre-existing condition waiting period and will not require you to pay out of pocket.

I'm very healthy. Why should I pay monthly premiums when I probably won't ever go to the doctor?

If you don't obtain health insurance, you are gambling with your health:

• Lack of health insurance causes 18,000 unnecessary deaths every year.
• Adults without health insurance have a 25% greater chance of dying from a disease or condition than those with health insurance.

You are also gambling with your financial future:

• A 2001 Harvard University study on bankruptcy found that nearly half of all bankruptcies were the result of medical debts or medical conditions.

Hospitals routinely charge uninsured people up to four times as much as patients with coverage, financial experts have told lawmakers. An average working man or woman treated at a hospital can be stuck with a bill that is double what managed care or government programs pay. Then, to add insult to injury, they are sometimes aggressively pursued for these inflated debts. Hospitals in the Philadelphia area, for example, charged an average of $30,000 to treat a heart attack in 2002. Most insurers ultimately were asked to pay less than $10,000.