Taking Advantage of Your Health Insurance Benefits When You’re Healthy

When you think of health insurance, you probably think of it as a good idea that comes in handy whenever you are sick or injured. A health insurance policy is like a rainy day fund. Instead of needing money to fight off a financial setback, health insurance represents a way to fight back against a health setback. Although our focus typically is maximizing health insurance benefits when we are sick or injured, there is another way of looking at the healthcare rainy day find.

It is all about taking advantage of your health insurance when you’re healthy.

Many health insurance plans, especially those offered by employers, provide valuable benefits when you’re at the top of your mental and physical games. Services such as preventive care, free medical equipment, and discounts on fitness club memberships represent just three of the perks you can enjoy as a healthy policyholder of health insurance.

Let’s see how you can maximize your health insurance benefits when you’re healthy.

Preventive Care

Health insurance is there for us when we feel sick or sustain an injury. However, health insurance is also there for us to prevent the development of healthcare issues. An annual physical examination screens for a wide variety of healthcare issues before they become serious maladies, including cholesterol, blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes. Getting checked on at least once a year by your healthcare provider helps you identify the development of cancerous tumors. You also can address mental health issues such as depression during an annual examination.

Free Medical EHealquipment

Just because you are healthy today does not mean your health won’t take a hit in the future. If you feel healthy, now is the time to take advantage of the savings generated by free or discounted medical equipment. Assistive devices such as a cane, a walker, and a pair of crutches provide physical support when you cannot get around as well as you usually get around. If you live with either asthma or diabetes, buying diabetic or oxygen supplies at a generous discount helps you allocate healthcare dollars to other issues when they develop down the road.

Rewards for Healthy Habits

How would you like to save money on health insurance by engaging in one or more healthy habits? Staying healthy is much more than annual physician visits and taking your daily vitamins. Many health insurance plans reward policyholders for engaging in healthy activities or stopping unhealthy habits.

Fitness Center Memberships

Your health insurance provider might reimburse you for part or the entire membership fee to a health club or fitness center. The policy might include arrangements with specific venues that receive a subsidy from your health insurance provider if you join their facility. Ask your health insurance provider if you can take advantage of a discounted or even a free membership.

Weight Loss Program

Obesity remains one of the greatest healthcare threats in the United States. Weight loss programs and counseling such as Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig help members discover effective ways to shed a few pounds, which places much less stress on the heart and joints.  Your health insurance plan might include a clause that rewards you for losing a certain number of pounds over a designated period.

Stop Smoking

Although it is difficult to do, quitting the unhealthy habit of smoking delivers several health benefits. You benefit from healthier lungs and a stronger flow of blood from the heart to other areas of the body. Quitting the habit of smoking also lowers blood pressure and enhances your dental health. Some health insurance plans cover both counseling and medications that help smokers quit the unhealthy habit.

Savings Plan

Taking advantage of your health insurance benefits when you’re healthy also involves looking into enrolling in a savings plan that is the health insurance version of a rainy day fund. A Health Savings Account (HSA) represents a tax-free savings plan that provides financial assistance to cover the costs associated with medical procedures that are not covered by your policy. A Health Savings Account can pay for deductibles, co-insurance, and prescription medications.

A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) offers you the opportunity to budget for an upcoming 12 months of health insurance expenses. For example, if you expect to undergo a medical procedure during the next 12 months, you can save money for the procedure by opening an FSA. Just remember that you must spend the money you allocate for an FSA during the 12-month period.

The Bottom Line

Enrolling in a health insurance plan is much more than a fallback strategy if you become sick and injured. It also is a resource of benefits when you feel healthy. Now that you feel at the top of your game, spend a little time reviewing your policy to discover what lies inside that can help you save money on monthly health insurance premiums.