Now that Obamacare is getting close to becoming a reality, many Americans are trying to figure out ways to beat having to pay for health insurance. Businesses are changing people from being full-time employees to being part-time employees to avoid having to provide health insurance for everyone. Under the new law, if you do not have health insurance, you will be fined on your taxes. Here are a few ideas that may help keep you from being fined and from having to pay some high price for health care coverage.
Eat Healthy to Stay Healthy
While most Americans realize that being overweight or not eating properly contributes to many health disorders, they are not ready to give up fast food and snacks. If you want to avoid high health care insurance premiums, you need to lose some weight. Insurance companies charge higher premiums for overweight people. They know that obesity causes heart problems, diabetes and a lot of joint trouble. If you get things under control and buy a policy before 2014, when the fines will go into effect. You can keep your rates at the same low price.
Having Catastrophic Coverage
There is some debate as to whether having catastrophic health insurance will be enough to satisfy the new laws. If it will be grandfathered in, you should get one of these policies right now. As long as you stay healthy and avoid going to the doctor for every little sneeze or cough, you won’t have to worry about the new taxes. You will have coverage should something truly awful occur; you get cancer or have heart failure and need a bypass or things of this nature. The only trouble will be if you go to the doctor for minor issues and get caught without coverage; then you may be fined until you get more health care insurance.
Participate in Clinical Trials
If you suffer from any type of chronic or lifelong disease, find clinical trials for new drugs and treatments for your disorder. Participating in these trials will provide you with medication for the length of the trial, which can often be over a year in length. You will also receive a complete physical to make sure you are in good health other than what the trial is covering. Having your medical needs met this way will keep you off the radar for not having coverage so you can avoid the fines.
Take Advantage of Private Clinics or Doctors who Work with a Sliding
Scale or Offer Payment Plans Places like Planned Parenthood, different dental offices and many mental health clinics will treat you and charge you based on a sliding scale; you only pay what you can afford to pay. Using these facilities will help keep you healthy so you do not need to be seen by your primary care physician and raise any insurance red flags.
Finding Complimentary Health Practitioners
Take advantage of alternative medicine. Find a practitioner and ask how you can get into a good, healthy state. These health care providers work with you to stay healthy instead of just treating you once you become ill. They are also able to treat you for common, simple illnesses.
Consider Individual Health Needs
When purchasing or evaluating insurance plans, it is also important to look at your individual health needs. Some policies may cover certain treatments or diseases, while others don’t. When comparing policies, be sure to consider what you will need to be covered in order to make the best choice for your situation. Think about your different areas of health concern, such as vision, dental, and mental health. Evaluate which plans will cover those the best when choosing a vision insurance broker or other specialist insurance broker while also considering the cost.
If you are trying to figure out how to avoid having to pay the high costs of health insurance and avoid any fines or taxes, you need to get into good health now. If you are not seeing a doctor for anything, your insurance status will not be an issue. If you do end up needing medical attention, having good general health will keep your health care insurance premiums lower than if you were sickly.
Author Bio: Dave Smith is a financial based blogger who tries to find solutions for common life issues revolving around finances, like the upcoming Obamacare.
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I think it’s so hard to convince Americans of a national healthcare systems like that of Canada’s or Ireland’s healthcare. I understand that taxes will be higher that way, but people not telling families about their illnesses, or keeping their mouth shut when they’re in pain cause they can afford medical care is just sad. As much as we all say we care about one another, we’d allow things like this to continue not to keep a roof over our heads, it’s just to get that new ipad, or to get some new shoes. We value material items over the health of individuals.
The upcoming changes are scary, I worry about some of my very expensive medications that don’t come in generic form. Staying healthy the best you can is SO important, and the clinical trials are a great idea if you qualify-I hadn’t thought of that. Lets hope this goes smooth and the negative impact is very, very minimal-but I don’t see that happening. Thank you for another important & informative post.
I am not really convinced that Obamacare is the answer…. what people in other countries think is it is a national healthcare system- which it is not. Our schools here are already planning on laying off part timers, many businesses who employ part time the same thing. I am curious how this will pan out. It is insurance comapnies profitting not the people gaining much of anything.
I wish things could be easier.
I am so thankful for the healthcare that I have through my job. I know there are so many people that don’t have healthcare it remains to be seen if Obamacare will really help.
I think that staying at a healthy weight,and eating healthy every day is a very good way to keep health insurance costs down. I think that Obamacare is going to hurt some people, but in the long run it will give access to so many people who are not covered.
i wonder how this will effect me. i do not have insurance through a company because i am in between jobs.
Good tips! I like the emphasis on preventative care, through eating well and taking care of your body. I also thought he alternative medicine was a great addition to the post. I could do without the politics of the whole thing, but it was pretty unbiased considering. I agree with phillisha in her post about health care generally being a good thing, so that people don’t avoid going to the doctor when they need to.
I would be in favor of everyone having affordable health care coverage, but I do not believe the ACA is going to do that, it isn’t for me. I will have to pay 3x as much as a younger person, and do not have the resources to keep high deductibles. If you miss a payment, you are slammed.