Who gets HDHPs?
High deductible health plans can be purchased by anyone, but these plans are most commonly chosen by people who are in generally good health. Because they are confident in their health and don’t plan on filling numerous prescriptions or multiple trips to the doctor or hospital, they feel quite comfortable with HDHPs because they may never use enough care to even come close to meeting the deductible.
What if something happens?
It is not out of the realm of possibility that a medical emergency could occur, even to the healthiest person. Hearts sometimes don’t work properly, accidents happen, and unfortunately, cancer doesn’t discriminate against anyone. If you’ve been otherwise in good health and therefore chose an HDHP, one of these unfortunate scenarios could drain your bank account or, worse yet, put you deep in debt.
This is where supplemental insurance plans can really save the day. Many people are unsure of the purpose of these plans, and others have never even heard of them. Accident and critical illness plans can offer tens of thousands of dollars of protection in the event you have an unexpected injury or serious illness.
Suppose you walk outside and slip on some ice on your steps in winter. This could cause dozens of injuries, but let’s say that when you slip, you break your right ankle. You can’t drive yourself to the hospital because (in addition to the fact that you’re in excruciating pain), you can’t operate the brake and accelerator pedals because of your fractured ankle. Aside from a trip to the hospital, x-rays, and any necessary procedures to fix the tear, an ambulance ride certainly doesn’t come cheap.
How the plans work
In the event of an accident, an accident plan generally reimburses you for your covered injuries. If you are diagnosed with a serious illness, such as a heart attack or cancer, a critical illness plan will usually pay a lump sum cash. Amounts and refunds/payments will vary for each policy and are determined based on the value you decide upon enrollment.
With these supplemental policies, your life has been simplified and your financial worries have eased. If you experience a covered illness or accident, your high deductible is no longer an issue because you’ll receive money from your plans to handle those high dollar amounts.
You may be thinking “the goal of an HDHP is to save money, and they want you to buy more insurance?” Well, technically, yes. HDHPs combined with add-on plans can still save you money because add-on plans are pretty cheap too. You’ll likely still pay less for three plans compared to one major medical plan with a lower deductible.
