Cheap Health Insurance - Health Insurance for The Self Employed

Home
>
Insurance
>
Cheap Health Insurance - Health Insurance for The Self Employed

Cheap Health Insurance - Health Insurance for The Self Employed

If you're self employed, you may think of health insurance as a luxury. When you're barely making ends meet, paying several hundred dollars a month for something you may not need isn't a priority. Or maybe you can't find a health insurance company to insure you because of a pre-existing condition. If you have no health insurance, you're banking on the hope that you won't get sick. But if you do, your business suffers.

If you can't get individual health insurance, or if the premiums are out of reach for an individual policy, there are a number of ways to get cheap and discount health insurance and health care.

Look Into State Subsidized Programs

Many states offer discount premiums for low income families and self employed business owners. Others have set up 'risk pools' that make your health care costs cheaper by spreading the risk throughout a 'pool' of people much like employers do with group plans.

Check with your state Health and Human Services office to see what health insurance discounts may be available to you based on your income. In most states, the income eligibility standards are quite high, especially in states that offer assistance for premiums with private health plans. You can get a substantial discount on family plans by joining a state health insurance plan.

Join a Discount Health Care Plan

Many organizations have worked out special discount rates with health insurance companies for their members. You may find discounts on health care and health insurance through your Chamber of Commerce, Small Businessmen's Association, even AAA auto clubs or fraternal organizations.

Another option is a discount medical club. For a monthly fee - usually about $30, you're eligible for discounts of up to 25% off regular costs for office visits, medical supplies and prescriptions as long as you use participating member vendors. Check online to find a discount medical club that has members near you.

Itemize Your Taxes

As of 2003, if you itemize your taxes, you can deduct 100% of your health insurance cost for the year from your taxes. There are limits and restrictions, so consult your accountant, or check the Internal Revenue Service web site online at www.irs.gov.

Shop Around for the Cheapest Rates

You can insure yourself through an individual fee-for-service health insurance plan for less than $100 a month if you shop around online for the best rates. In many cases, you can get online quotes for as many as 10 different health insurance companies and choose the one that suits you best. You can even apply online and be covered within 24 hours.

Unexpected medical costs can destroy your business. Some creative financing and unusual options for dealing with them can prevent that from happening.

To view our recommended sources for health insurance, or to read more articles about health insurance, visit: Recommended Health Insurance Companies Online.

Carrie Reeder is the owner of eZerk, an informational website with articles and the latest news about various topics.

In The News:

Yahoo! News: Top Stories

Obama OKs modest tax changes after seeking ideas (AP)

AP - Pushed by fellow Democrats, President-elect Barack Obama agreed to modest changes in his proposed tax cuts on Friday after inviting lawmakers to "just show me" ideas for fixing an economy shedding jobs at an alarming rate.

Ill. House impeaches governor, who vows to fight (AP)

AP - Gov. Rod Blagojevich was impeached Friday by Illinois lawmakers furious that he turned state government into a "freak show," setting the stage for an unprecedented trial in the state Senate that could get him thrown out of office.

Israel and Hamas ignore UN call for cease-fire (AP)

AP - Israeli jets and ground troops hammered at Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip and Islamic militants fired barrages of rockets at southern Israeli cities Friday, ignoring a U.N. resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire after two weeks of combat.

Pastor in gay scandal: I'm back from 'wilderness' (AP)

AP - Speaking out two years after being embroiled in a gay sex scandal, former evangelical pastor Ted Haggard said Friday his sexual identity is complex and can't be put into "stereotypical boxes," but that his relationship with his wife is stronger than ever.

Palin: Is Kennedy getting 'kid glove' treatment? (AP)

AP - She messed up her first interviews, didn't show much of a grasp of the issues and, dontcha know, had a speech pattern that was widely mimicked.

Texas death row inmate pulls out eye, eats it (AP)

AP - A Texas death row inmate with a history of mental problems pulled out his only good eye and told authorities he ate it. Andre Thomas, 25, was arrested for the fatal stabbings of his estranged wife, their young son and her 13-month-old daughter in March 2004. Their hearts also had been ripped out. He was convicted and condemned for the infant's death.

Rare 'dinky' bird migrates to US for first time (AP)

AP - Birders with binoculars and cameras are flocking to a remote state park in search of a small yellow-chested bird that apparently crossed the U.S. border for the first time from its high-mountain habitat to the south.

'Dexter' brother and sister are husband and wife (AP)

AP - They play brother and sister on "Dexter." Now in real life, Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter are husband and wife. Hall's spokesman, Craig Bankey, said on Friday that the couple eloped in California on New Year's Eve. They'll walk the red carpet together at the Golden Globe Awards on Sunday the first time publicly acknowledging their relationship.

George the lobster gets new lease on life at 140 (AP)

AP - A new lease on life at 140? That's what a Manhattan lobster got Friday, when the 20-pound crustacean named George was released from a swanky Park Avenue restaurant's tank. City Crab and Seafood agreed to a request from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to let the lobster return to the Atlantic Ocean.

Stimulant exemptions in baseball on the rise (AP)

AP - Baseball authorized nearly 8 percent of its players to use drugs for ADHD last season, which allowed them to take otherwise banned stimulants. A total of 106 exemptions for banned drugs were given to major leaguers claiming attention deficit hyperactivity disorder from the end of the 2007 season until the end of the 2008 season, according to a report released Friday by the sport's independent drug-testing administrator.

Citi, M. Stanley in brokerage talks; Rubin quits (Reuters)

Reuters - Citigroup Inc is in advanced talks to sell its Smith Barney brokerage unit to Morgan Stanley, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, in a move that would further dismantle the financial supermarket that has been bailed out by the U.S. government.

Illinois House votes to impeach Gov. Blagojevich (Reuters)

Reuters - The Illinois House of Representatives impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Friday for abuse of power, including a charge that he tried to sell President-elect Barack Obama's former U.S. Senate seat.

Israel, Hamas press on with Gaza war (Reuters)

Reuters - Israel pressed on with a punishing Gaza offensive and Hamas sent more rocket salvoes into southern Israeli towns in a two-week-old war that continued to defy international efforts to stop it.

Obama team, Rep. Frank eye bailout fund overhaul (Reuters)

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama and a key Democratic lawmaker revealed plans on Friday to overhaul the government's $700 billion financial rescue fund as a way to aid struggling homeowners and speed the flow of credit.

Jobless rate at 16-year high as payrolls plunge (Reuters)

Reuters - The unemployment rate surged to the highest in nearly 16 years last month as a deepening year-long recession forced companies to axe more than half a million jobs, government data showed on Friday.

Supreme court to decide voting rights law challenge (Reuters)

Reuters - The U.S. Supreme Court said on Friday it would consider a challenge to a central provision of the 44-year-old voting rights law aimed at preventing states and local governments from making it harder for minorities to vote.

Bank industry slams lawmaker-Citi mortgage deal (Reuters)

Reuters - A top bank industry group said on Friday that it opposes an agreement between Citigroup Inc and Democratic senators that would rewrite U.S. bankruptcy law to help troubled mortgage borrowers avoid foreclosure, saying it could make home loans more expensive.

EU seeks to finalize Russian gas monitoring deal (Reuters)

Reuters - The European Union sought to finalize details on Friday of a gas monitoring deal to allow the resumption of gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine, which have been cut off for days over a pricing row.

Defiant Israel presses Gaza offensive as toll passes 800 (AFP)

AFP - Tanks and warplanes pounded Gaza on Friday after Israel defied a truce order from the UN Security Council as the death toll from the two-week-old conflict against Hamas passed 800.

Somali pirates say they have released Saudi supertanker (AFP)

AFP - Somali pirates said Friday they had freed a Saudi-owned supertanker, whose capture nearly two months ago caused panic in international shipping and spurred the world into tougher anti-piracy action.

Cheap Health Insurance - Health Insurance for The Self Employed

Insurance Insurance