Which type of health insurance?

General
1

Hello Everyone! My daughter was diagnosed in 2008 with AVMs. Currently the AVM is inoperable but most likely to bleed, since her last stroke was on July, 2009. Since the diagnostic, we have always had PPO health insurance with major medical coverage which has always worked for us. Out of pocket expenses high but still doable. My husband has a new employer and since she only covers his insurance, we are asking ourselves what type of health plan should we choose? We don’t want an HMO, we don’t want to deal with preapprovalif we need to go out of state for Juliet. Does
anyone have a HSA plan? Are those better for the scope of treatment and evaluation of an AVM patient? Or is a PPO a better option? I appreciate your feedback.

2

Hi Jacsha,

You pose a very good and very difficult question. I'm not sure anyone here can provide more info than what worked for them in their situation where they lived and which Drs they went to.

My suggestion would be to approach it the other way around: What insurances do most of the DRs that your Daughter goes to work with? Cost will obviously be a factor as well I'm sure.

I would start with your primary care Doctors, and any specialists that you've gone to. That might give you a feel for the most coverage. You might even ask who your specialists consult with, and contact those folks to see what they take.

Another possible source would be a social worker, or patient advocate or whatever they might call it at your local hospital. They might be able to point you someone who can give you a better answer. I think most states have a state insurance commissioner. A web search at least there might be a starting point too.

Insurance is very complex, and although I know there are good insurance agents out there, you have to understand that a selling agent gets a commission, so their opinion might be biased.

Best wishes in your journey,
Ron, KS

3

Thanks for your advice, I haven’t thought about the state commisioner’s office, I’m going to contact them.
Take care and thanks again.

4

Eileen, thanks for your advice! She is 8, right now she is functional and does not qualify for SSI. PPO with major medical coverage has worked in the past, so I think we might stick with that. I’m still doing my research on her providers, verifying if they are in the network. Thanks for your advice and take care.