MedSave.com Expands Student Health Insurance

MedSave.com is geared-up to provide personal enrollment support to thousands of college students sorting through the maze of health plans available this semester.

(PRWEB) August 18, 2005 -- Students returning to college this month will find an expanded list of health insurance choices available online with no increase in the price since last semester.

MedSave.com sorts through these choices to present best of these health plans in an easy state-by-state listing with personal support to help choose the best choice for each student.

Tony Novak, head of the OnlineAdviser service that supports student enrollments for many health plans, says that the list of choices has become overwhelming to many students. Unfortunately, all of the plans are not of equal quality. Students tend to be less experienced than their parents when it comes to buying insurance so there is a significant risk of choosing the wrong plan if price is the only shopping criteria. Novak handles up to 50 calls and e-mails each day from students across the county at the beginning of the school year. This semester he expects even more.

Price drives health insurance" says Novak, and young people are more vulnerable than older adults to choosing the wrong policy based solely on price". Students often incorrectly perceive the benefits of a health insurance plan by extrapolating their knowledge of a former health plans and do not find out until after they have incurred a large claim. A student health plan priced at less that $50 per month should not be assumed to provide the same benefits as their parent's plan that is priced at $500 per month.

Students are advised to select a health plan that offers coverage with any doctor or hospital in the U.S. or worldwide, depending on their travel plans. The length of time that coverage is needed should also be considered. Short term medical insurance is often used as a low cost substitute for renewable student insurance but students approaching graduation should be prepared to keep their coverage for longer periods if they choose to continue their education or select a career path that does not include employer-provided health benefits.

Finally, students should be aware that advertised health plans that sound too good to be true" often are not legitimate. Many are not even major medical insurance plans at all but supplemental insurance paired with a PPO discount arrangement. MedSave.com suggests that a short personal telephone conversation with the live OnlineAdviser service at the time of enrollment can help confirm the quality and suitability of a specific health insurance plan being considered by a student.

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