The average hourly wage in Canada was $25.70 at the end of 2018. How much is your leisure time worth? Canadians depend on lots of little conveniences to maximize their time with friends and family.
Do you get pizza delivered to your door? Order a taxi ride by app? File your taxes online?
Amazing, isn't it, that we used to get in the car and drive to a restaurant, hail taxis and fill out endless paper forms. Now, how about something a little more difficult?
Did you know you can shop for your supplementary health insurance online? No more spending the day on the phone trying to get straight answers. You can have instant health insurance quotes delivered directly to your inbox in minutes.
Keep reading to learn more.
Public Health Insurance Covers Only Medically Necessary Costs
Canada's much-envied public health system as really made up of 13 independent systems. Your location determines your exact coverage and eligibility. Each territory and province determines what is "medically necessary" in its own area.
All public healthcare plans pay for certain doctor visits, lab costs, and hospital services. Which services are eligible is up to the individual province. Most prescriptions, dental care, and vision care are outside the public healthcare system.
These costs, as well as care for the disabled and elderly or medical equipment like a prosthetic arm or leg must be paid out of pocket. To defray these costs, nearly two-thirds of all Canadians have private supplementary insurance.
Are You Paying Too Much For Coverage?
To answer that question, you need familiarity with your local health policy. There are more than 150 companies authorized to sell life and health insurance in Canada. Many of the companies have dozens of policy plans.
You need a plan that meets your family's needs and lifestyle. To compare the most accurate instant health insurance quotes, you need to know your family risk factors and the "gaps" in your coverage where public health falls short.
For example, dental coverage of orthodontics might be important if you have three children with overbites. It's probably less important if your children are adults with their own dental plans. On the other hand, long-term disability coverage might be something to consider if you are the sole breadwinner and you have several dependents.
Are Plan Costs Really That Different?
$13,000 is what each Canadian household spends on health care costs. This includes taxes that support the public system and private insurance premiums. A full 90% of all Canadians with private health insurance pay their premiums through their employer or union.
Cost, quality and benefits vary widely in extended policies. Your policy might include alternative treatments like homeopathy or acupuncture. You might have life insurance or not.
The law in Canada does not mandate that an employer must pay a portion of e of the premium. You could find yourself paying 90 percent or more of a several hundred dollars a month premium if you do not compare plans.
Know Your Risk Factors
Insurance companies rate risks differently. Some companies offer a reduced premium to non-smokers, for example. Tobacco use isn't the only risk factor, though. Here are some typical things a company considers.
Age Pool
You can't change the ages of you and your family members but they are a factor in your premium calculation. In general, insurance companies favor younger people as less expensive than older people. The older a person is, the more likely they are to have costly health claims.
Very young and elderly family members may affect your premium. In general, extended insurance does not cover respite care or daycare.
Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Past diagnoses of cancer, diabetes, arthritis or other illnesses may preclude your acceptance into a risk pool. In other words, you or a family member might get rejected. Other insurers charge higher premiums for groups with pre-existing conditions.
For some chronic conditions, an insurer blocks reimbursement for the condition to write the policy. They will cover other illnesses, just not treatments related to the original condition.
Insurers don't have automatic rejections for all pre-existing conditions. Not all pre-existing conditions get hit with increased premiums by every insurer. Some of Canada’s health insurance providers accept everyone.
Weight
People who are overweight can pay higher health insurance premiums. A high Body Mass Index is related to more claims regarding joint pain, fertility issues, and heart disease. Overweight and obese people are at greater risk for diabetes and stroke.
Severely underweight people can be a mental health risk, prone to autoimmune disorders, weak bones or poor dental health. Insurers want bigger premiums for these kinds of risk.
Stress and Physical Fitness
People who participate in some form of regular physical activity are healthier than individuals who do not exercise. Your insurance company may take your personal exercise habits into consideration.
Other Factors That Affect Premiums
While you do not have control over all of these factors, they do play a role in your insurance quote. Your instant quote online allows you to give this information once and get quotes from many companies.
Instant Health Insurance Quotes Comparisons
Interpreting each company's quote is easy. For a true comparison, look at similar plans with similar risk factors. Our system makes it easy.
If you have an employer-provided health plan, look into supplementary family plans with your employer first. Bundling additional policies with your employer-provided policy can be cost-effective. Compare your employer coverage with our quotes.
For certain types of insurance, you cannot choose private coverage outside of your employer-offered plan. Even if our service finds you the same or better coverage is less expensive, you must use your employer plan. However, you can use our quotes to leverage your employer to offer a better subsidy.
What to Look for in an Instant Quote
Be sure to look at all of the out-of-pocket costs, not just the monthly premium. There is an inverse relationship between premiums and deductibles. The larger the deductible, the smaller the premium.
Many plans have deductibles and co-payments. These can add up quickly and you should consider your family situation.
High and Low Deductibles
This is the amount you must pay out-of-pocket before your health insurance plan covers your treatment costs. For example, a very low monthly premium plan might have a $1,500 deductible. This means that the first $1,500 of healthcare not covered by provincial health is paid-out-of-pocket.
Your supplementary health insurance starts paying for care after you pay the first $1,500 of eligible costs. Deductibles renew every year. Even if you are undergoing a continuous treatment for a year, you need to pay the deductible again at the annual renewal.
Co-Payment or Co-Insurance
Health policies make you responsible for a portion of your healthcare costs called a co-payment or co-insurance. You pay 100 percent of costs until your deductible is paid. After your deductible is paid, if you have 80/20 co-insurance, for example, you pay 20 percent of the bill.
Your supplementary insurance picks up 80 percent of the cost. Another form of the same idea is that you have a fixed co-payment. For example, you might have a $20 co-payment for prescription drugs. Every prescription you fill costs $20, with your insurance company picking up the rest.
Health Plan Annual Limits
All health plans have an annual and lifetime maximum dollar payout for certain products and services. For example, Plan I might set a limit of $100 a year for vision coverage while Plan II pays a maximum of $1,000 a year for medical devices such as glasses and hearing aids.
After the plan has paid for glasses up to the annual limit, you are responsible for the additional costs. It may be worth it to your family to choose higher limits of coverage, even if the premium is higher. Select a plan with annual maximum limits that meet your needs.
Start Getting Quotes Today
You can get instant health insurance quotes online immediately. Our easy to use quote system matches you to the most qualified brokers and agents in your area. Only the best and largest companies make our health insurance comparison list.
There are a number of available plans. Compare premiums, annual limits, co-pays and geographical scope in one simple visit. Some companies may have a dozen or more plans to compare to others.
You can narrow down your extended health plan providers by location, budget and service level. The government plans cover only medically necessary procedures and treatments, the rest of the medical expenses are up to you.
Contact us to start your instant cost comparison of health insurance today!
