There’s always comfort in knowing that in the event, your health takes an unexpected turn, you and your family will have a financial safety net with insurance.
Whenever money’s tight though, paying for both a life insurance policy as well as healthcare coverage each month can get tricky.
Life vs. Health Insurance
Every type of insurance serves a completely different purpose, offering different coverage. Life insurance will pay out a death benefit to your beneficiaries in the event of premature death. The purpose is that this is sufficient to replace any future income loss, as well as cover up expenses and obligations such as funeral costs, medical expenses, and other debts, or even to fund college savings accounts or spousal retirement.
Health insurance, however, helps pay for medical expenses such as doctor’s visits, medications, tests, hospital stays, and procedures, helping to ensure that people can afford their medical expenses and stay healthy.
In reality, many people genuinely need both types of insurance, especially if they have one or more dependents. In that case, the better idea is to limit your coverage to what you really need so you can afford both insurances. Remember that insurance needs can also change dramatically during different life stages, so what might seem essential for a parent with a teen child might not be as important for a recent college graduate or even a retiree.
If you’re a grad, relying on your mom and dad’s policy isn’t really an option and if you’re under the age of 30, an inexpensive catastrophic policy might be worth thinking about. While you won’t be reimbursed for most doctor visits and other day-to-day health needs, after you reach a certain deductible, you’ll get a safety net if you ever end up experiencing a major medical issue.
Once you get a spouse or have kids, health insurance takes on a whole new level of importance. If your employer gives you a health plan, that’s usually going to be less expensive than going shopping on an exchange. At work, your company is usually subsidizing a big part of your health premium, while in the ‘individual’ insurance market, you’re paying the full bill.
Those aged 30 and younger who aren’t suffering from chronic illness may get by without health insurance but people with dependents need both unavoidably.