Students and Individual Health Insurance

A Health Care Article Contributed by Ajishnu Sharma

Group Health Insurance vs Individual Health Insurance

There is a basic difference between individual health insurance and group health insurance. Group health insurance is usually provided by the employers in an organization. This kind of insurance provides insurance cover to the employee, without taking into account existing or pre-existing medical conditions. Individual health insurance, on the other hand, is insurance bought directly by an individual from an insurance provider.

The insurance provider has to take into account pre-existing medical conditions also, when it comes to individual health insurance. Also, individual health insurance plans tend to be costlier than group plans. Individual health insurance plans are good for self-employed people, small business owners, as well as students. We will discuss individual health insurance for students in this article.

The Health Plan for Students - Individual Health Insurance

Many students might not feel the need to have for themselves an individual health insurance plan. This could be because they are already covered under their parents' insurance plans. Most managed care insurance plans offer insurance for the child, till the child is 25 years of age. While this is a good thing, there area few things that might lead to you not being covered under your parents' insurance plans, if you are a student. We will take a look at what these situations could be.

If you are a student, and if you find that these circumstances apply to you, you might want to look at the idea of an individual health insurance plan for yourself.

Anyways, it is a good thing to have an individual health insurance plan for yourself.

When a Student Might Need an Individual Health Insurance Plan

There are numerous factors that could determine whether you, as a student, should look at an individual health insurance plan. You first need to find out if your parents' plan is a HMO. This is because many HMO plans would take care of the child's insurance only in the area where the parents are living. If the child is studying away from home, then only his/her emergency medical requirements could be covered by the insurance provider.

So if your parents' policy is a HMO type policy that does not cover the child if he is staying away from home, then you need to consider the prospect of an individual health insurance plan for yourself.

There are other points to consider as well. If your folks' plan is a preferred type of plan, you need to ensure that the provider has a good network of physicians and medical facilities under its wing in the area you are staying in. If that is not the case, again you may need to look at an individual health insurance plan for yourself.

Also, you need to know whether you are covered for emergency medical facilities at your location under your parents' plan. You also need to have the number of the plan provider with you. In case you require emergency medical treatment, you need to have the required authorization form the plan provider.

These are just a few of the things you need to know, and then based on where you stand regarding coverage under your parents' plan based on these factors, you can consider the need for an individual health insurance plan.