Pictured: Client, Laura Cavitt, reviewing her medical bills and explanation of benefits with our Patient Navigator, Joanne Reinhart
Is it a foreign language?
Trying to figure out your health insurance carrier’s forms and letters are a nightmare. And, that is when you aren’t sick. So, imagine you are a cancer patient or you have some other chronic or acute disease, and you must understand that it can be downright maddening.
Therefore, I thought it might be a good idea to write a Blog post about "How to understand your Health Insurance policy".
But, as I sat down to write out a simple How-to blog, I quickly realized I couldn’t make it short and simple. Hallelujah, we have a 3 part series!
Let’s get started with some terms that you should find on your insurance ID card:
I hope this helps you understand your Insurance ID card a little more. Stay tuned for Part II: What is an EOB? And, how can I figure out what it is supposed to be telling me?
But if you have health insurance questions in the meantime, please post them below. Or, you can email me directly at cmetzger@cancerpatientservices.org.
Trying to figure out your health insurance carrier’s forms and letters are a nightmare. And, that is when you aren’t sick. So, imagine you are a cancer patient or you have some other chronic or acute disease, and you must understand that it can be downright maddening.
Therefore, I thought it might be a good idea to write a Blog post about "How to understand your Health Insurance policy".
But, as I sat down to write out a simple How-to blog, I quickly realized I couldn’t make it short and simple. Hallelujah, we have a 3 part series!
- First, I will explain some common terms you see on your ID Card.
- The second post will explain some terms to help you understand your EOB a little more.
- And the last part of the series, I will talk about what to do if you think there is a mistake somewhere. And yes, they happen more frequently than you think.
Let’s get started with some terms that you should find on your insurance ID card:
- Group Number – This is the number assigned to the group that is purchasing your insurance. It could be your employer, an organization like the Chamber, or the group number of the insurance broker where you purchased your individual coverage
- Plan Number – Not everyone has a plan number. But if you work for an organization that offer different health insurance options, you should have a plan number.
- Identification Number – Prior to HIPAA this number was always your social security number. But now it is a unique identifier to the insurance carrier specifically for you as the insured. The ID number refers to the person in the family that is carrying the insurance. That is whoever is paying for the health insurance coverage.
I hope this helps you understand your Insurance ID card a little more. Stay tuned for Part II: What is an EOB? And, how can I figure out what it is supposed to be telling me?
But if you have health insurance questions in the meantime, please post them below. Or, you can email me directly at cmetzger@cancerpatientservices.org.
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