Unless you have spent a considerable amount of time learning your healthcare plan and understanding it fully, it is likely you will end up having your healthcare coverage effect you in a negative manner. This will significantly effect your pocketbook, not to mention your time, energy, and even your lifestyle. It does not have to be this way. It can be simple to maximize your healthcare coverage by following this 5 simple tips that are sure to work for you.

5. Stay in Network

If your insurance offers a better benefit for obeying certain rules such as seeing a doctor who participates with your insurance, follow them. Chances are you can be paying as little as a simple $5 copay each time you go; Compared to huge bills and penalties for seeing a doctor that is not participating with your plan, or worse, having a bill go unpaid by your insurance plan for not sticking with one of their providers.

4. Know your Benefit Order

Do you have more than one insurance? Do you have Medicare? Know ahead of time who is your primary, secondary, ect. Finding this information out will help you know who you should see your claims first! Going out of order will just gunk things up and could cause a bill to go unpaid long enough to send you to collections!

3. Know What You Need

If you have an HMO you are required to have a Primary Care Physician (PCP) and obtain referrals for care. If you are having a high-dollar amount service, chances are it needs some form of an authorization from your insurance before hand. Make sure these are obtained in advance; not only will it help your claims fly through and avoid extra out of pocket expenses, but it will help make sure you are getting the right level of services for your condition.

2. Contact Your Insurance

By contacting your insurance you can make sure your files are up to date as well as confirm that the services you need are a benefit before hand, and what requirements they may have. Most insurances will clue you in if you are about to do something that could cause you to pay more on out of pocket expenses. The more you contact them the more you will learn about your own insurance, and their processes for handling claims, benefits, and so on. Also don't be afraid to keep a log of who you talked to, what they said, and when. Even going as far as to get a confirmation number for the conversation or requesting information in writing will help protect you in case something pays different than how it is supposed to.

1. Know Your Benefits

If you fail to ask, or figure out if something is covered under your plan then you are taking a gamble. Insurances often get a bad wrap because people just assume things will always be covered. Make sure you know what you are doing, and if you are unsure ask. Stating you didn't know the speed limit is no way to get out of a ticket. Knowledge is power and the more you learn the better off you will be.

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