BUPA International - The world's largest provider of
international expatriate health insurance, supplying quality cover to people
who are in their home country or living and working abroad. Whether you're looking
for a plan for yourself, your family or your employees, they offer you exceptional
levels of protection and support. Choose from a variety of plans including
a flexible private health plan that ensures you only pay for the cover you
need. Why choose BUPA International? The BUPA Group was established over 50 years ago, and now we cover over eight million members of 115 nationalities in 190 countries. As a member of BUPA International, you'll enjoy the following benefits: 24 hour multi-lingual helpline, open 365 days a year Access to a global network of over 5,000 participating hospitals and clinics worldwide Direct settlement arrangements with our participating hospitals and clinics Payment of claims in local currency - so that you don't lose out on exchange rates Flexible cover options to suit your individual needs and budget Your own membership cards with important telephone numbers Online help and advice on our MembersWorld website |
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In these days of rising medical costs it is only natural that you should
shop around to find the best deal when it comes to an individual health insurance
plan and, for most people, that means looking for a good insurance company
offering cover at an affordable premium. Unfortunately, it is not quite that
simple.Before you start to worry about how much you are going to have to pay
for health insurance you must first determine the type of health insurance that
you need, as there are several different forms of individual health insurance
plan available today. There are essentially three main types of health insurance.The first is tradition indemnity (fee-for-service) insurance. This is a form of insurance that many people will be familiar with and which, a few years ago, was the dominant form of health insurance. Today, however, it is generally considered to be an expensive option. Indemnity health insurance is not designed to cover day-to-day medical care but instead provides cover for unexpected illnesses and, more often than not, allows the policyholder considerable freedom when it comes to choosing where to go and who to see for treatment. The policyholder is also responsible for much of the administration of an indemnity policy and is required pay his own medical bills in the first instant and then to complete the necessary claims forms to gain reimbursement. Because indemnity insurance is designed to meet unexpected medical expenditure policies will seldom cover routine medical bills.The second form of health insurance is referred to as managed care and the best known example of this is the original Health Maintenance Organization, or HMO.The principal behind HMOs is to reduce overall medical costs by focusing attention on keeping the policyholder in good health and catching potential problems at an early stage when they can be treated easily and relatively cheaply. Accordingly, HMOs focus on providing cover for routine medical care and for such things as screening and check-ups. There are two other significant differences between indemnity insurance and managed care. The first is that managed care operates within a managed care organization and the insurance company handles all of the paperwork and the payment of bills. The second is that, because treatment must be carried out within the managed care group, the policyholder has far less choice over where and from whom he receives treatment. HMOs were not generally well received when they were first introduced and came in for a great deal of criticism, much of which was justified. HMOs have done much in recent years to meet this criticism and have been largely successful in doing so. However, this process has also given rise to the third form of health insurance today, and one which is gaining rapidly in popularity, Preferred Provider Organizations, or PPOs. PPOs are essentially a mix between indemnity and managed care with care being provided normally under the umbrella of a managed care organization but with policyholders having the freedom to seek treatment outside of the organization in certain circumstances. Which form of insurance will best suit your needs if course dependent very much on your personal circumstances. If you are young, fit and healthy and visit the doctor once in a blue moon then you may feel that indemnity insurance would best suit your needs. If, on the other hand, you are married with four young children and have a history of health problems within the family then the focus on preventative medicine provided by managed care may be more attractive to you. The important point to remember here is that your starting point in looking for an individual health insurance plan should be to decide upon the type of plan that you need and only then should you move on to look at how much it is going to cost. For more information on finding a suitable individual health insurance plan and low cost health insurance there is no better place to start your research than right here on the Internet. |