Health insurance in America is a system that helps individuals and families in the United States to cover the costs of medical care. So are you searching for topics like: health insurance in America, insurance companies in America, medical insurance in America, International Health Insurance and Health Insurance in the United States for non-Citizens, this article answers all your questions on the topics.
Types of Health Insurance in America
Are you a US citizen or looking forward to reside in America and you want to know all the health insurance in the US, there are only 4 types of health insurance in the United States, namely;
- Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI): Many Americans receive health insurance through their employers. The employer often pays a portion of the premium health insurance. This works basically for the working class Citizens.
2. Medicare: A federal program primarily for people aged 65 and older, as well as some younger individuals with disabilities. This health insurance is to protect the elderly and disabilities in the United States. Data shows that in 2018, Medicare provided almost 60 million individuals with healthcare in the US, over 51 million of which were older than 65.
The Medicare program is divided into four parts:
- Part A – which covers hospitals, skilled nursing and hospice services.
- Part B – covers outpatient services, including some providers’ services while inpatient at a hospital, outpatient hospital charges.
- Part C – is an alternative called Managed Medicare, which permits patients to select health plans with at least the same service coverage as Part A and B, often the benefits of Part D, and an annual out of pocket spend limit which A and B lack. To sign in this part, one must sign in Part A and B fist.
- Part D – covers mostly self-administered prescription drugs.
3. Medicaid: It is a state and federal program that provides health coverage to low-income individuals and families. This insurance covers those living below average and less privilege Families in the US. It is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with low income in the United States. Data shows that the US provided health Insurance to 71 million people with low income or disabilities, which is 23% of the total of the US’ population.
4. Health Insurance Marketplace: This health insurance type is created by the Affordable Care Act, also known as – Obamacare, these state-based or federal exchanges offer plans for individuals and families who don’t qualify for Medicaid and don’t have ESI.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a federal statute signed into law by President Obama, which made it mandatory for every citizen to have health insurance or be penalized. The Act subsidies for low-income families, by taxing healthcare providers and high-income families, as it was designed to lower health care costs while providing better health care for Americans.
The Affordable Care Act allowed parents to ad their children up to the age of 26 to their policies, in a bid to have younger healthy people paying premiums. It also allowed poorer people to get treatment for chronic illnesses instead of using the emergency room.
Additionally, all the 4 types of health insurance in the US are grouped into 2, namely; Public and Private health insurance. While the US public health insurances are: Medicare, Medicaid, and Children Health Insurance Program, the private health insurance is the Employer-sponsored health insurance.
What does health insurance cover in USA?
Health insurance typically covers most doctor and hospital visits, prescription drugs, wellness care, and medical devices. Most health insurance will not cover elective or cosmetic procedures, beauty treatments, off-label drug use, or brand-new technologies.
Health Insurance in America – How the US Health System Works
Healthcare in the United States is organized in a complex bureaucracy. While in the rest of the world healthcare facilities are owned mostly by governments or by private sector businesses, in the US, a large share of hospitals and clinics are owned by private non-profit organizations.
Yet, the United States is the country that has the highest healthcare expenditures in the world. While these expenditures are covered in a large share by public payers as by Federal institutions, or State and local governments, they can also be covered by private insurance and individual payments.
At the same time, unlike most developed nations, the US health system does not provide health care to its entire population. As there is no single nationwide system of health insurance, the United States primarily relies on employers who voluntarily provide health insurance coverage to their employees and dependents.
Adding to this, the government of the US has programs that tend to cover healthcare expenses for the fragile parts of the society as the elderly, disabled and the poor. These programs differ from one another, and all have a specific kind of people that are subject to.
Getting health insurance in the US is not an easy thing. Someone may think that once you have money everything is easy, but in actuality, things are a bit more complicated. One must be very careful and look out to pick the right insurance.
Health Insurance in America for non-Citizens
The United States government does not provide health insurance for all its people, and health insurance is not obligatory for those living in the US. It is optional, but highly recommended and necessary since health services are very costly, more than in any other country anywhere across the globe. Here are some of the health insurance for US non-citizens;
- Travel insurance for visitors in USA
- Health insurance for international students in USA
- Health insurance for dependents of international students.
- Health insurance for J-1 visa holders
- Health insurance for foreign workers on an H-1B visa
- Health insurance for dependents on an H-4 visa holders
- Health insurance for Green Card Holders
- Health insurance for K1 visa holders
- Health insurance in USA for Canadian Expats.
The US has the most expensive healthcare in the world. That’s why getting adequate health insurance coverage comes highly recommended.
US Private Health Insurance/Medical insurance in America
There are about a thousand private health insurance providers in the US, with each of them offering different plans with different prices, which largely depend on a person’s medical history. However, while there are individual plans, covering only one person, there are also group plans targeting families in particular. here are some of the medical health insurance in America:
- 21st Century Insurance[2][3][4]
- Acuity Insurance
- Aflac[5]
- Allianz Life[6]
- Allied Insurance[7]
- Allstate[8]
- American Automobile Association (AAA)[9]
- American Family Insurance[10]
- American Income Life Insurance Company
- American International Group (AIG)[11][12]
- American National Insurance Company[13]
- American Strategic Insurance (ASI)[14]
- Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance
- Ameriprise Financial[15][16]
- Ameritas Life Insurance Company[17][18]
- Amica Mutual Insurance
- Amtrust Financial Services[19][20]
Health Insurance requirements for Foreign Visitors in the US
Though, the United States Authorities have not made health insurance mandatory for short-term travelers to the country, as B-1/B-2 visa holders, it is highly recommended for every traveler to get insurance before their trip to the country. The main reason why you should get insurance is that healthcare in the US is extremely expensive and even a check-up for a simple headache will cost you hundreds of dollars, while a broken limb will cost you thousands. Health incidents are never foreseen, therefore it is best to be prepared for it and get insurance, so in case of need you save yourself money.
Health Insurance Options for Legal Immigrants?
The Immigrants that are lawfully present in the United States are eligible to get private health insurance in the US. In addition, lawful immigrants may also eligible for lower costs on monthly premiums and lower out-of-pocket costs based on your income, as follows:
Those with annual income 400% of the federal poverty level or below may be eligible for premium tax credits and other savings on Marketplace insurance.
Whereas, those with annual household income is below 100% federal poverty level that are not otherwise eligible for Medicaid are eligible for premium tax credits and other savings on Marketplace insurance, given that they meet all other eligibility requirements. in most cases, “qualified non-citizens” are eligible for coverage through Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), given that they meet the income and residency rules of the state where they are based.
Health Insurance Options for Illegal Immigrants
Illegal Immigrants in the US can get health coverage only from private providers, as the US government funded health insurance does not cover them.
Community centers can provide medical help to undocumented immigrants in the US, which is termed Safety Net Providers, if the healthcare seeker can participate in fee for service medical assistance. However, it should be noted that health insurance in the US can change time to time depending on the Government in Power.
