Does Most Health Insurance Cover Prescription Costs?

Most Health Insurance companies normally offer some form of prescription coverage. It is important however to understand the full scope of what medications are covered in order to select the best health plan for you and your family.

There are a couple of key factors about prescription coverage to consider when determining which health insurance plan to choose such as annual caps and the difference between standard in generic medications. A cap works opposite of a deductible in that when you reach your annual spending limit any further prescription costs will be paid by the patient full price and out of pocket. Since some name brand drugs can be very expensive a generic plan may not be the best option for you and your family.

If you only have access to a health plan that does not offer prescription coverage you can supplement your medical insurance with an optional prescription plan. Oftentimes these plans include additional fees which may or may not be worth the additional cost. Similar to choosing a health insurance plan, it is important to understand your current health conditions and any conditions of your family to know if an optional prescription plan would be cost effective.

Questioning various medical plan providers about what drugs they do or do not cover is important because sometimes an insurance company will not include what are referred to as non-formulary drugs. These are medications that an insurance plan has decided not to include in the coverage because of either cost, lack of efficacy, or there are other drugs covered under the plan which provide similar benefits for patients.

Due to the rising cost of medical care today it is important to consider all aspects of health insurance for you and your loved ones. One diagnosis of high cholesterol, cancer, or HIV, even with quality Medical Insurance with no maximum lifetime benefits, could still be financially disastrous if you haven't chosen an appropriate health plan with quality prescription coverage. But as with all things in life, basic health coverage with basic prescription plan coverage is better than no coverage of all.