DrChrisHE - what insurance company are you thinking of switching to?
Well, that's a great question. We've done an analysis of many companies. The problem is that one can buy affordable insurance that will cover you everywhere BUT in the US or one can buy ridiculously priced insurance that includes the rest of the world and the US (as we all know, the US prices for health care are the highest in the world--not necessarily the best; just the most expensive.) However, because Dh travels back and forth and we'll have a kid in college in the US (plus two here) we decided that we needed something that WOULD include US services.
That long drawn out explanation is there to tell you what my reasoning is. The one we believe we have settled on after months of debate is Global Healthcare Plan which is administered by Goodhealth Global. It isn't cheap but isn't it most expensive. What one needs to look at is how much do you use health care services, what types, are you particular about your providers, how much can you pay out of pocket, do you like big or small deductibles and copayments (flat amount) or coinsurance (%), what the exclusions/inclusions and waiting periods are. We are no longer looking for coverage for pregnancy BUT I will tell you as an insider, plans that cover pregnancy tend to attract a younger and healthier population so sometimes it makes sense to throw yourself into one of those plans. If you select a plan for that covers long term care, you are going to automatically get thrown into a higher-risk, older population risk pool. It's just the way insurance rating works.
Some other things to consider: Is there an upper limit (patient's stop-loss) on how much YOU would have to pay in a catastrophic event? Is there a limit to how much the insurer would pay (upper limit)? Do you want alternative services covered (acupuncture, chiropractic, NDs, etc.)? Do you need pharmacy coverage? Do you need dental coverage? LTC/long term care, mental health, drug treatment, etc...are all spelled out and you need to be careful about how insurance companies define them and what they consider an "episode" to be. Sometimes they will count from the beginning of a year, other times from a new illness event.
Any other ?s, I'm happy to answer. Once upon a time, I taught university grad and undergrads "Health care reimbursement mechanisms.":bunny::bunny::bunny: