From choosing health insurance plans, to containing the costs of our care, wise patients learn to think like wise consumers, too.
Many employers offer Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) as a benefit to their employees. As long as we are able to estimate them accurately, they can offer us some real money savings. Here is the way to estimate how much money to set aside in a FSA, and how to maximize the use of a flexible spending account.
Health Savings Accounts and Flexible Spending Accounts are different ways to pay for health and medical related expenses that have tax benefits. Because they have confusing rules, we may be reluctant to use them. Here is a comparison of the commonalities, differences and benefits between HSAs and FSAs.
Patients are beginning to wield their power as consumers to improve access and satisfaction with their providers, access to the services they want, and the costs associated with their care. The basic tenets of healthcare consumerism address the influences patients can have.
CPT codes are developed by the American Medical Association and are used by doctors and other healthcare practitioners to describe medical, surgical and diagnostic procedures used on patients. Learn more about these codes and how you can use them to manage the cost of your care.
HCPCS codes are Medicare codes and are used by doctors and other healthcare practitioners to describe and bill medical, surgical and diagnostic procedures used on patients. Learn more about these codes and how you can use them to manage the cost of your care.
These guidelines will help you choose the best health insurance coverage for you and your family, either during open enrollment, or when your circumstances change.
So often there are aspects to getting good healthcare that are difficult to understand. Why won't the doctor spend more time with us? Why is some Internet health information unreliable? Why does my insurance company deny the treatment my doctor has recommended? The answer is "follow the money."
A health savings account (HSA) is a great way to save money on healthcare, if you are eligible to use one, and if your health expenses aren't too high.
When we are denied the medical care we want or think we need, having a knowledge of the concept of healthcare rationing will go a long way toward helping us how to combat it. Understanding healthcare rationing will also help us understand conversations in the coming years about healthcare reform.
Check this master list of stores that offer free or low cost antibiotics, pre-natal vitamins, and hundreds of other generic drugs.
One way to save money on our healthcare costs is to use generic equivalent drugs. While generics are "bioequivalent" to their branded counterparts, that doesn't mean they are exactly the same. Understanding the benefits, and the differences, too, will help you make the wisest drug choices.
Drug prices continue to climb. Insurance and prescription payment plans are more costly, too. Tips for saving money on our prescription drugs should help us reduce the negative effects on our wallets.
Beginning October 1, 2008, Medicare implemented a new never events policy. While it is intended to improve patient safety, there will be some consequences patients need to be aware of.
American health care is too often more about sickness and money than health or care. The fact that hospitals now use patients' financial information is a measure of this problem. While it seems unfair to ask hospitals to do business with people who won't pay, it also seems unfair to patients to have to worry about whether they will get treatment based on their credit records.
Patient-consumers are often surprised to learn of the existence of a reporting agency called the Medical Information Bureau (MIB.) Similar to credit reporting agencies, it may have records about you that you should be aware of.
Healthcare fraud costs Americans billions of dollars each year, and contributes to the dysfunction of the healthcare system. Understanding how fraud takes place can help us patients recognize it, and take steps to report it.
Medical identity theft is a growing problem with negative consequences that can affect one's health and finances. A wise patient understands the possible consequences and how to avoid them.
