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Anchor lead: The business of insuring your health is changing rapidly in America, and
the main impact of that change is paying more and getting less. So it pays to know what to look for. Bankrate.com has
some tips to make you an informed health insurance shopper.
Voice over 1: Shopping for food is something that's second nature. You compare ingredients, prices
and quality.
Voice over 2: But very few people feel as confident when what they're shopping for is health
insurance ... and it shows in the prices they pay.
SOT: "I went from a big company paying a regular price of $500 to leaving and going to Cobra which
was $1500. To now paying $400 a month."
Voice over 3: The key to buying health insurance is to understand the key ingredients. For example,
one major ingredient effecting price is the deductible.
SOT: "If you're going to the doctor occasionally once or twice a year and you have one prescription,
there's no reason for you to have an extremely low deductible plan and an expensive plan."
Voice over 4: Another important ingredient is the network.
SOT: "The pool of doctors, hospitals and pharmacies that are contracted with the insurance company
providing your coverage."
Voice over 5: So you want a big network ... but a small stop-loss.
SOT: "The maximum exposure the patient has out-of-pocket before he's no longer responsible for any
additional out-of-pocket."
Voice over 6: You also need to have a big lifetime limit: the maximum the company will pay over
your lifetime.
Standup: If you understand some key ingredients, and ask lots of questions, you can and should
understand your health coverage. For Bankrate.com, I'm Kristin Arnold.
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