Take an active role in choosing your health plan

When you take an active role in choosing your health plan, you end up with a plan with which you and your family can enjoy the maximum benefits. In order to take an active role, you need to research which plan most meets the needs of you and your family, an Indemnity Plan, a PPO, an HMO, or a POS. Remember to check with your employer to see which plans are available to you.

In addition to looking at the plans, you should check with your doctor to see which plan(s) he/she belongs to. If available to you, you should enroll in a plan which your doctor is also a member. That way you can avoid paying out-of-network fees or losing coverage altogether.

If you don't have a doctor, check out the list of the doctors on each plan. You will probably want to choose a plan where the doctors are close to where you live or work. Otherwise, the money you save on the plan you might end up spending on time and travel expenses.

Also, call the plan to confirm the doctor is still a network provider. Changes may have occurred since the list was printed.