Your Health Insurance Brochure in Virginia

Health insurance is a sensitive issue in Virginia. With the state officially opposing the Affordability Act and the date of implementation already gone by, residents are left confused about whether to go for a medical policy or not.  But reforms or no reforms, if you are one of those, who still do not have a health insurance, then you are in a minority and you better hurry up. The first step in while purchasing health insurance in Virginia is to log onto to the state department of insurance. The state bureau will give you all the information that you will need before you buy a medical policy.  The bureau will also give a list of all those carriers who have a license to sell health insurance in Virginia. It will also enlist those companies that are questionable.  You need to make your pick only from those who have the legal rights to sell health insurance in the state of Virginia. After you have decided on the company, it is now the turn to decide on the policy. Depending on your needs, you can either buy an individual, family or group insurance. And depending on the budget, you could either go for an indemnity or managed healthcare plans. In indemnity health plans, one usually has to pay the medical bills upfront and then get it reimbursed by the insurance company. These plans are the most flexible as there are no restrictions attached. But, these plans are very costly and are slowly being replaced by managed healthcare plans. Managed healthcare plans are of various types- the most basic of them being the HMO (Health Maintenance Organization) plans. These plans are the cheapest as they concentrate on providing primary and preventive healthcare.  However, there is a prescribed network of healthcare service providers and one necessarily has to stick to it. There are other plans like the Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) and the Point of Service plans that may not be as cheap as the HMOs but are more flexible and offer wider range healthcare service providers. After you have decided on the plan, it is important that you do a thorough quote comparison. Quote comparison can be done either on the website of the independent insurers or you could log onto an independent portal. An independent portal will give you a more thorough, unbiased and comprehensive quote comparison. Quote comparison is essential as it will give you an idea about the cheapest plan within the restrictions and conditions. After you are sure about the plan and the price, it is now time to make the final purchase. Read the policy details carefully before you give in the dollars. It is not about the finances alone, but more importantly it is about your health as well.  Therefore it is important to make the right and informed choice while buying health insurance in Virginia.