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eLearning Series:
Your Most Popular Insurance Questions
Answers For Health and Home
Insurance
( 50 articles
in this series )
Protect Yourself
From Health Insurance Scams
Crime invades every spectrum of life in the
United States and around the world and sadly, even people trying
to protect them and their loved ones from health-related financial
burden are at risk. Federal statistics show a steep
rise in the number of fraudulent or unlicensed health insurance
companies
in recent years. The result? Hundreds of thousands of Americans
spent their money on what could be worthless health care coverage
that should have been worth more than a quarter billion dollars.
Most of the bogus insurance is provided through employer-sponsored
programs where scurrilous shysters have access to hundreds
of potential victims, or to self-employed workers and small
businesses that may not be able to afford or participate in
a decent group plan.
It has been suggested that the high cost of health care benefits
in the United States has contributed to the rising number of
health insurance scams. With more than 40 million Americans
living without any kind of health care insurance, fraudsters
have a huge market of people who want to think they are getting
a deal on a service that offers medical protection for their
families. In fact, a Georgetown University study found the
dramatic increase in medical care insurance scams has risen
at the same time health care insurance premiums have recorded
double-digit rate hikes.
Often,
the scam does not reveal itself until after one of these
unfortunate beneficiaries tries to use their health insurance
to cover an approved medical situation. By then, depending
on the family’s ability to pay for medical services without
insurance, a financial crisis may already be in the works.
State governments tend not to offer guarantees or financial
protection when health care insurance plans are revealed as
a swindle or if the insurance provider is unwilling or unable
to pay for legitimate claims.
Despite the awfulness of perpetuating such a horrible crime,
fraudulent health insurance companies often get away with their
stolen money intact. Authorities are unable to simply swoop
in and arrest the bad guys; investigations take time and organization
if they are to succeed in getting enough evidence to bring
about a guilty verdict in court. Unfortunately, by the time
such an investigation can be mounted and authorities can make
a move, fraudulent health insurers have had a chance to hide
their assets or have moved on to another location under another
name.
There are several things that may make you suspicious
about the legitimacy of a health insurance provider. First
among these is price. Fraudulent medical insurance companies tend
to offer cut-rate prices as a way of luring victims to hand
over their money. The truth is that health insurance can be
a pricey prospect. If you think you’re getting too good of
a deal, you’re probably not getting a deal at all. As the old
adage goes, if something seems too good to be true it probably
is.
A second indicator that the health insurance provider you
are dealing with might be a scam operation is the presence
of less than usual or even the absence of the regulations that
govern other insurance providers. Fraudulent health insurance
plan providers also try to attract potential clients by boasting
about regulatory freedom at the state level. Don’t be fooled:
legitimate health insurance providers are not immune from state
regulation. Quite the opposite is true. Many types of insurance,
including health care insurance, are regulated primarily by
each state.
Additionally, while health care insurance fraud is a nation-wide
problem, a survey of some of the identified medical insurance
scams has revealed Texas and Florida as particular
hotbeds of fraudulent insurance activity. Beware of any health care
insurance providers that have recently started business. Check
with your better business bureau to make sure there have been
no complaints.
There are some things you can do to protect yourself against
fraudulent health insurance plan scams. The first thing you
can do is be aware that bogus plans are out there. The second
step you take to protect yourself while still getting a reasonable
health care insurance plan is to educate yourself about your
available options: shop around, ask questions, request proof
of licensing (operating an unlicensed insurance operation is
illegal in every state), get recommendations and contact a
state insurance commissioner to verify the legitimacy of a
health care insurance operation before you sign anything.
Click here to to view health insurance quotes, compare plans side-by-side and apply for the most affordable health insurance within your budget. I did this myself (June 17, 2011) to change my health insurance policy. Saved me $84 per month (or $1,008 per year). It's my SolveYourProblem recommendation.
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by SolveYourProblem.com : 2005
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