Be sure to pay special attention to your health and stress levels at this time, and be prepared to take full advantage of your insurance policy in the event that sickness or injury do occur. The American health care industry is different from most in the world since the financial responsibility is largely borne by the patient, so there are some important health care and insurance terms to become familiar with before your stay in the United States:
- Provider – The company or entity that record-keeps and maintains your insurance policy.
- Premium – The amount that you will pay to your provider each month for coverage.
- Deductible – A set amount that you pay in some plans before the insurance provider will pay. For example, if your deductible is $250 per year, you’ll need to pay for health care out of your own pocket until you reach $250; at that point your provider’s coverage will start.
- Copayment – A set amount that you must pay each time a particular service is rendered. For example, many insurance plans require a $10 or $20 copayment for every doctor’s office visit.
- Coinsurance – This is an alternative to copayments. You pay a percentage of the total cost and your provider pays the rest. Depending on the type of care you need, this option can become very expensive.
- Exclusions – Care that is not covered by your provider. A common example is cosmetic surgery. Most insurance providers will not cover procedures that are not deemed to be directly linked to a patient’s health.
- Coverage limits – Some plans designate a limit on health coverage (usually a dollar amount). That limit can be monthly, yearly, or even over the course of your lifetime, but once it is reached, you must pay all expenses incurred beyond the limit.
- Out-of-pocket maximums – In this scenario, a limit is set by your provider on the amount of money that you can spend on health care. Like coverage limits, they can be set on a monthly, yearly, or lifetime basis. Once the out-of-pocket maximum is reached, the provider covers all additional expenses.
- Pharmacy – A place where medicine is sold.
- Prescription – A written order from your doctor authorizing you to receive medication from a pharmacy.