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PAGE 14
HEALTHCARE
know of people who have hardly used
equipment that they'll sell you for a song.
It never hurts to check. Have a professional
evaluate the piece of equipment to make
sure that it's the right one for you."
INSURANCE
Handle COBRA with care - The Consoli
dated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act
of 1986 (COBRA) says that if you leave your
job, you can take your health insurance with
you and keep it for up to 18 months, provid
ed you pay for it on your own. But that's not
always a good idea. If you are fairly healthy,
you might be able to find a policy that will
be more economical than your COBRA plan,
says Pilzer. The longer you wait, the older
you'll be, and the more a new plan is like
ly to cost. Be cautious about moving from
group insurance to individual, however, if
you have pre-existing conditions. Your new
insurer may try to exclude them from cov
erage. You might want to check with your
state department of insurance to know your
rights before you make any changes.
Think before you apply - If you get
turned down for health insurance once,
you'll have to report it on all future applica
tions. So don't apply in writing until you're
fairly confident you will be accepted. How
do you find that out? Apply in person or
over the phone, or ask a good broker who
represents many companies. Different com
panies have different "look back" periods
the span of your recent health history they
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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNALS FALL MEDICAL GUIDE 2008
take into consideration, usually from three
to 10 years. If you had some health issues
in the past, you may have better luck with a
shorter "look back."
Check your health credit - Few people
know about it, but there is an outfit called
the Medical Information Bureau (MIB).
Similar to a credit bureau, MIB keeps tabs
on things such as test results and serious
ailments you suffer. Though not everyone
has an MIB record, if you have applied for
individual life, health, or disability cover
age within the past seven years, chances
are you do. And the bureau can tell insurers
whether you are a good risk or not. MIB is
subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and
so, if you ask to see a copy of your record,
the bureau is required to send you one. Get
your report by calling 866-692-6901 or go
ing to the website. You'll see what insurance
companies are told, and that will give you a
good idea of how easy or difficult it may be
for you to get insurance on your own. And
you can correct any errors that may be cost
ing you coverage.
Silence is golden - After you've made
an application to a health insurance com
pany, you'll typically get a telephone veri
fication call. "Listen to each question care
fully, pause, think about the question, and
then answer only and exactly what has been
asked. A simple yes or no without comment
is often your best reply. Don't start a con
versation. Don't elaborate on your answers.
The person at the other end of the telephone
is not your friend, and any extra informa
tion you provide can only be used against
you—and may wind up on your MIB," says
Pilzer.
Think short-term - Normally, you
wouldn't want a short-term health insur
ance policy. Unlike most policies, they are
not guaranteed renewable. But because of
that feature, they tend to cost much less
than regular insurance—about one half to
one third as much. If you know you won't
need to renew the policy because you've got
a job with good benefits lined up, "it makes
sense to flip to a short-term policy and save
yourself a bundle," says Pilzer. "Most car
riers carry short-term insurance, so the
switch may just require a call to your pres
ent agent."
DENTISTRY
Be a guinea pig - Just as medical schools
are a place to go for cheap medical care, den
tal schools offer extremely high-quality care
for about one third the price you'd pay else
where. Just be aware that going to a dental
school for care isn't going to be quick, it can
be very time-consuming.
Watch the markup - It's perfectly okay
to ask a dentist, 'ls this a fair price?' One
Pennsylvania man was handed a S9O bill for
a single tube of hydrogen peroxide tooth
whitening gel. He went online, searched for
"dental supplies," and rapidly discovered
that the wholesale cost for the tube was
about $7. "Er, excuse me, but that's a 1,200
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Continued from pg. 13
percent markup," he pointed out to his den
tist. The dentist charged him s2l for the
tube and wrote "$69 professional discount"
on the bill.
THE POLITICS OF HEALTH CARE
Although take-charge tactics can help to
reduce health costs, the need for such tactics
is indication that our health care system is
troubled.
Activist William Schwied, M.D., says that
ultimately the only answer, if Americans
want reasonably priced, effective health
care, would be to adopt a national, govern
ment-funded health care system, similar to
what exists in Canada and Western Europe.
Pilzer, who is not only an author but also
a former economic adviser to two former
(Republican) White House administra
tions, agrees that a "complete reform" of
the system is needed, though he favors a
free-market approach. Among his propos
als: allow health insurance to be sold across
state lines, make all insurance premiums
tax-deductible, and allow for international
competition in pharmaceuticals.
Divergent as many opinions may be, ev
eryone can agree on one point: "Nothing
is likely to change if government officials
continue to have unlimited lifetime health
benefits while the rest of us do not. How
can they possibly understand what so many
Americans must suffer to get decent health
care?