The United States is the most expensive country in the world for medical care. Charges for a typical emergency room visit can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars. If surgery is required, the cost can run into the tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Living in the U.S. without health insurance can lead to huge debts at any time due to medical expenses.

We are committed to your health, and we're here to help you find the best health insurance plan for you. Perhaps you are new to health insurance. Below we will give you a brief overview of health insurance in the United States.

Some medical insurance terminology.

• Premium (premium): The fee required to purchase insurance, usually referred to as monthly premium.
• In-network: clinics that have a partnership with the insurance and are reimbursed more by the insurance for visits to in-network clinics.
• Out-of-network: usually less or no insurance reimbursement than for in-network clinics.
• Deductible: The deductible is the amount that the policyholder has to pay before the insurance company starts to pay, the lower the deductible the better for the policyholder, but the premium will be higher with a lower deductible.
• Co-payment: the amount of money one has to pay per visit for certain items, the lower the co-payment the better for the insured.
• Coinsurance: the percentage of the cost of medical services you will have to pay after the deductible has been paid in full, the lower the coinsurance the better.
• Out-of-pocket Maximum: the maximum out-of-pocket amount within one year of enrollment, including all copayments, deductibles and coinsurance you pay. When you meet the maximum out-of-pocket amount, the insurance company will 100% reimburse all medical expenses for the remainder of the year, so the lower the maximum out-of-pocket amount, the better.
• Maximum Benefit: Depending on the insurance, this may be calculated on a per visit basis, per policy year, or lifetime basis.
• Coverage (insurance coverage/reimbursement): items that will be reimbursed by insurance, reimbursement costs, etc.
• Pre-Existing Conditions: Some health insurance policies will deny coverage for conditions that existed prior to the purchase of coverage (e.g., certain illnesses, pregnancy, etc.), but Obamacare cannot deny coverage for pre-existing conditions.
• Waiting Period: Some insurance policies require a certain period of time before reimbursement for certain diseases and conditions, usually ranging from 6 months to 1 year.
• Prescriptions/RX (prescription drugs): Reimbursement for prescription drugs.

Types of Medical Insurance

• Health MaintenanceOrganization (HMO): Health maintenance organization, HMO insurance plan has the least freedom, generally the premium is cheaper, it only reimburses the services provided by clinics and doctors in the HMO network (except for emergencies); the insured has to designate a family doctor (Primary Care Physician) to see a specialist The policyholder must designate a Primary Care Physician (PCP) and see a specialist who is recommended by the family doctor (referral), otherwise the insurance will not reimburse.
• Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO): A designated provider organization, EPO insurance plans are slightly more liberal than HMOs, and also only reimburse services provided by in-network clinics and doctors, except for emergencies, but no referral is required to see a specialist.
• Preferred Provider Organization (PPO): Preferred provider organization, PPO insurance plans are more liberal and can reimburse both in-network and out-of-network medical services, but if you use the services provided by in-network clinics and doctors, your out-of-pocket expenses will be much less and you do not need referral to see a specialist; however, if you use out-of-network services, you may need to first However, for out-of-network services, you may need to pay out-of-pocket first, and then fill out a form to submit information to prove that you are applying for a refund from the insurance company, and the premiums for PPO plans are generally more expensive.
• Point of Service (POS): a fixed point of service, POS insurance plan is between HMO and PPO, more choices than HMO, but less premium than PPO; POS plan will reimburse in-network and out-of-network medical services, less out-of-pocket costs if you choose in-network; need to designate a family doctor, see a specialist need to be recommended by the family doctor referral (referral).

How do I buy health insurance?

There are more than 200 health insurance companies in the United States, and each of them has HMO, PPO, EPO and other types of health insurance to meet the needs of different customers, which sums up to thousands of insurance plans to choose from. Many people may choose a health insurance plan based on the premium, but the fact is that a good or bad health insurance company can affect the convenience, speed and fairness of paying compensation in the future, so choosing a reputable health insurance company is also a part that should not be overlooked.

Our insurance managers will help you choose the right insurance company and the right plan for you based on your age, family, medical condition and address. Please contact us as soon as possible if you are in need.