Glen Luckman Individual Health Insurance Policy  By Reina Raine

In the event that your employer does not provide you health insurance cover, it is best to get an individual health insurance policy. You may be fit and do not spend much on your health care. But just one hospitalization can lead to financial ruin.

You can contact an independent health insurance agent to help you get a better understanding. However, do check out if the agent is registered with your state department of insurance. You can also find such information at the website of the National Association of Health Underwriters.

You also have the online option where you can do a side-by-side comparison of policies from different companies. This is a really convenient option.

When getting an individual health insurance policy, make sure to check for the following:

1. Non-cancellable, guaranteed renewable coverage

Make sure that so long as you pay your premiums and don’t try to defraud the insurance company, they cannot cancel the policy.

Unfortunately, these companies will cancel health insurance policies under certain circumstances, and this is legal in many states.

So, make sure you find a policy that is non-cancellable and guaranteed to renew each year, if possble. If not possible, then look for a “conditionally renewable” policy. This means that the insurance company reserves the right to cancel all policies similar to yours, but cannot single you out for cancellation.

2. 10-day rescission period

The insurance company gives you a 10-day period to examine the policy documents before deciding whether you want to accept the health cover. You should be able to get a premium refund if you cancel within this period.

The extent of coverage in individual policies is vast and there will be more options to choose from unlike when your employer pre-selects types of plans from which you choose.