Choosing the right family health insurance is the greatest challenge. You have to consider a lot of things before you decide on one. Naturally, questions range from benefits to how much you have to pay. Still, it is better to ask certain questions for your own peace of mind. These questions are basically about the percentage of costs covered and what benefits you will get. The choice of course is another factor; whether you can choose your primary care physician, or require a referral to the specialist. Now comes the money factor involving how much you can pay for the monthly premium, the deductibles and the co-insurance costs.

Selecting the right health plan depends upon your purchasing power and the type of insurance you need. If you want to pay less for consultations, hospital visits and medical bills, you have to opt for a higher-premium plan. Health plans also differ with the way you wish to consult a practitioner: some limit you to a specific practitioner while others allow you to visit any doctor you want.

The other plans are the affordable ones, which include the fee-for-service, HMOs, PPOs and POS. In the fee-for-service plan you have to pay the medical practitioner a fee for the consultation or the medical service he provides you. The doctor, the hospital or you can claim the reimbursement for the covered services under this insurance.

Fee-for-service policies reimburse only 80% of your expenses; you have to pay the rest 20%. This portion of the medical expenses that you bear is called the co-insurance.

The next type of plan is managed care. The managed care plans also give comprehensive health care for their members. In managed care plans you need not pay a fee for the service; instead, it is pre-paid. HMOs, or health maintenance organizations, provide managed care plans. This is one of the affordable health insurance options. The HMO will charge you a monthly or quarterly premium. As extras you have to pay only small amounts of ‘co-payments’, and there is no co-insurance or deductible. You are entitled to visit any doctor who has a contract with the HMO.

The other is the preferred provider organization (PPO), which combines the features of the fee-for-service plan and the benefits of the HMO services. Here the member can choose a doctor from the network of doctors registered with the PPO. A ‘co-payment’ is there for certain services or visits, and you have to pay a deductible too. The payment is divided between the insured and the insurance company at a mutually-agreed-upon ratio.

The point of service (POS) is the last one that is similar to the HMO services, but here is a coordinating physician who will refer you to a specialist. Short-term medical plans are yet another type for when you do not have a permanent job, or you are out of your job temporarily. Whatever be the plans, be careful in choosing them, because a health plan is basically one that helps you not to fall into debt traps when emergencies come.