Health Insurance Articles

Common Items That Individual Medical Insurance Does Not Cover

2010-09-11

When getting health insurance coverage quotes, you may notice there are some missing items in the coverage. Not every medical cost you may incur will be covered by your medical insurance policy. When it comes to medical coverage, there are generally several missing items that will not be included. Here are a few common items that may not be included in your policy.

Cosmetic procedures are generally not covered by individual medical insurance. This means, if you want to get some type of plastic surgery in order to improve your appearance, this will not be covered by your medical insurance. This is a completely elective procedure that is not necessary to promote your health. Therefore, most health insurance companies will not provide any coverage for it.

Chiropractic services are another medical treatment that may not be covered by your health insurance plan. In many cases, insurance companies do not cover chiropractic treatments or acupuncture that is administered by a chiropractor. Some insurance companies do cover these expenses, while others only cover them partially. Therefore, it is important to read the documentation of your policy to make sure you are covered before booking an appointment.

Experimental treatments are often not covered with regular medical insurance either. These are becoming more common with medical research attempting to find cures for cancer and other diseases. If you have to go into the hospital in order to receive some type of experimental treatment, your health insurance will most likely not pay anything.

Most individual health insurance plans also do not cover maternity costs or delivery. In most situations, you have to purchase an additional maternity rider for your policy if you want the insurance company to cover it. Even if you do this, you will essentially be pre-paying the maternity costs that will be incurred. With group insurance at an employer, maternity benefits are often extended; however, individual policies usually do not include these benefits.

Also, individual medical insurance does not generally cover dental procedures. If you have to go to the dentist or have another type of oral procedure done, you will most likely need to purchase a dental insurance policy. You might also need an orthodontics insurance policy for some procedures as well.

Vision related procedures are generally not covered by traditional medical insurance either. In order to visit your eye doctor, you will need to purchase a separate vision insurance policy. This type of insurance will help you with the cost of the doctor visit, as well as paying for glasses or contacts.

When getting health insurance coverage quotes, it is important to see exactly what is covered and what missing items you may have to pay for out-of-pocket.