e Health Counselor

Private family health insurance and prescription affordability are two of the most prominent issues facing the United States’ health care system today. With health insurance premiums rising at a rapid rate, and the goal of paying for the prescription medication needed to treat an illness fast slipping out of reach for many American families, it is surprising that many people are still unaware of the options available to them in terms of prescription purchasing.

A very traditional method of purchasing prescription medication is to take the prescription advice slip into a pharmacy, ask for the prescription, pay for it and leave, all without private health insurer involvement. With the rising cost of brand name prescription medication, this is likely not a viable option for many families, but the option does still exist, and is how many of the millions of Americans without health insurance get by medically every year.

One far more common means of obtaining prescription medication is by paying extra money each month on top of your insurance premium. This will give you a range of included prescription medication with a low copay and deductible. Some plans with a prescription add-on option have a high deductible for those patients purchasing brand name prescription medication as an encouragement to purchase only generic medication, which reduces the cost to the insurer. As always, it is worth keeping an eye out for insurers and private health insurance plans that do not have such high deductibles for brand name prescription medication.

Some group and individually purchased private health insurance plans include prescription medication as part of the monthly premium. These plans often have a higher monthly premium than plans where prescription medication can be added on as an option. It is a good idea to do a few calculations to see which is cheaper in your state – purchasing an ‘all in one’ plan with prescription medication included, or purchasing a lower cost private health insurance plan with the option to add on prescription medication for a fee. This will vary from state to state and private health insurer to insurer. As always, it is important to undertake diligent research prior to making a purchasing decision.