Our health insurance premiums increase every year and the only recourse we seem to have is to increase our deductibles and dilute our benefits. We have clients whose health insurance premiums are now larger than their mortgages. Does anyone know where this is all going to end?
We all must have health insurance coverage that meets minimum guidelines and it can be neither “too rich nor too lean.” Unfortunately, the benefits that most of us can afford are so lean that they really do not provide the protection many of us need to avoid financial disaster.
The trend in the Federal guidelines appears to be steering us toward greater preventive coverage and those services that government officials have determined we need. Sadly, most of us can find affordable options for wellness exams, but when a high deductible is applied to our medical claims many of us are left in financial crisis. The fact that the majority of Americans are within 90 days of financial destruction does not help when medical conditions come up.
Politicians on both side of the aisle are coming out with criticism, but I have heard no good suggestions. Do any of them truly have any idea of what reasonable coverage and reasonable pricing are?
Since no one in authority seems to have any clue of what should be done, the best we can do is to start taking REALLLLLY good care of ourselves. Diet, exercise and stress management are critical when we look at what happens when things go wrong medically. Careful review of medications and ongoing treatments should be part of our routine. We should ask for help finding less expensive alternatives for drugs and services we use at every opportunity. And if we are told that we would benefit from losing weight or increasing our exercise we should take that advice seriously.
We are the only ones who benefit from controlling our use of medical services. We are also the only ones who will pay the price now and later for expensive medical services we will need if we do not take our health into our own hands. Let’s avoid what we can since there is so much over which we have no control.
Please contact us at CDA Inc. if you need some suggestions or would just like some moral support.