Money Musings 💭 A health insurance game-changer 🤯
Health insurance... We need it. It costs tons of money. It’s a complete cluster of jargon and policies.
Side note: I cover health insurance and everything you need to know about it in chapter 10 of Financial Adulting - check it out!
But there is something very specific about health insurance I want to talk about today - the out of network EXCEPTION.
Many health insurance plans categorize providers as "in-network" or "out-of-network."
Why?
Because health insurance companies pay for lots of people’s medical bills they negotiate discounted rates with doctors and hospitals. These are the in-network providers.
Anyone else is out-of-network which is typically not covered (until you meet a high out-of-network deductible) OR only partially covered.
Sometimes you may want to use a doctor or provider who is not in-network. OR maybe you can’t find someone in-network who can see you any time in the near future.
If there is no one who is in-network, has availability AND has a specific expertise in your area, you can file to get an out of network exception.
If approved, the out-of-network provider will be counted as in-network by your insurance. HUGE win. 👏
We’ve had this happen a few times. Most recently, there was an out-of-network occupational therapist that came highly recommended. E would be seeing them weekly and the cost per session would be significant.
There weren't many in-network occupational therapists and none had availability. We were approved for the exception and now pay 10% of the cost (the same as we would if they were an in-network provider).
While this takes some work and waiting (you have to gather information from the provider and file with the insurance company) it can save a ton of money and allow you to see the provider you wish.
I’d love to hear if you’ve done this before. And of course, don’t hesitate to reach out with questions.
MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
MAKE A TRAVEL BUDGET - PART #2 - MAKE YOUR TRIP FAB FRUGAL.
Fabulously frugal means maintaining the fabulousness of something while decreasing the cost. It’s about creating win-win situations for our happiness and our financial well-being.
Doing this exercise with the travel budget you made last week is a great way to reduce your travel budget without the sacrifice.
Here’s how to do it:
STEP #1: Start with the first trip on your list. What’s most important to you about it? Maybe you are looking forward to quality time with friends / family, are really excited to explore a new area or want to learn about a different culture. Whatever is most important to you about the trip, you want to honor that. Is the neighborhood of the hotel important to you? Do you prefer luxury, or do you not really care?
Pro Tip: If you are traveling with others, you can ask them these questions too!
STEP #2: Then, what is not important to you about the trip? Where are you spending money that you would be okay letting go or decreasing the cost? Maybe you decide you’re more interested in finding local gems than going to more expensive restaurants and sights. Maybe you realize staying in the trendiest neighborhood is less important to you or that you don’t need the more luxurious hotel. The letting go of the things that are less important to us allows us to decrease the cost of the trip without giving up the things we love.
STEP #3: Once you make each trip fabulously frugal, add up the NEW total cost per trip and for all travel.
The best part is, you can test out what you planned and adjust for future trips. Maybe you realize the neighborhood is more important than you thought. You can change it for next time. This can be a living process!
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
DEFINE: SHORT AND LONG-TERM DISABILITY INSURANCE.
Disability insurance replaces some (typically 50-60%) of your income in the case that something happens and you are unable to work.
More than one in four of today’s 20-year-olds can expect to be out of work for at least a year because of a disabling condition before they reach the typical retirement age. Yikes.
The main difference between short-term and long-term disability insurance is the length of time you have coverage.
SHORT-TERM DISABILITY is for the short term. It typically kicks in after a couple of weeks and can provide you with income for a year.
LONG-TERM DISABILITY is for the long term. It covers your income from around the year mark until retirement.
How much will this cost? Unless you get short-term disability through work (many do), it’s usually not a cost-effective insurance to have. If your workplace doesn’t offer a short-term disability policy, you can protect yourself for the short term with rainy-day fund savings.
Unfortunately, the cost of long-term disability insurance can be hefty. It can cost 1–3% of your income per year. If you have long-term disability insurance available through work, it can often be much cheaper. Get Financial Adulting for a complete guide!
Important: An "own-occupation" policy will pay out if you can’t work in your current job, even if you can work in another job. If it’s not an own-occupation policy, you might only see a payout if you can’t work in any job. That’s a huge difference!