Health Insurance Guide For The Self-Employed

Most plans will provide coverage for you in the US if you have an urgent or emergent event. That means if you need to be seen or treated within 48 hours. BUT they often fail to tell you that if you don’t call and find out where they have a contract, you can get nailed with what they call a Balance Bill. So let’s say you are in Disneyland and little Suzy trips on the sidewalk and breaks her arm. If you run to the closest urgent care, they will most likely take your card and get her in a cast. But the thing is, EVERYTHING in California is more expensive. So, at home, your insurance would pay $700 for a broken arm. But in Cali they charge $2,000. If you failed to call and go to a contracted provider, YOU are responsible for the difference. If at all possible, call your provider and find out where they have a contract.

If you are traveling out of the US, buy a travel medical policy. Your policy MAY include coverage, but the process is torturous and does not provide things like child care and translation services. Travel medical policies are pretty cheap, you only buy them for the time you are gone, and they provide a lot of very specific coverages like flying in a babysitter to help watch your kids while you are in the hospital. I actually buy these now when I travel more than 500 miles from home because I am usually the only adult traveling, and I want to know my kids won’t be stuck sitting in the ER alone.