PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, April 9, 2002

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Citizens' Council on Health Care
1954 University Ave. W., Suite 8
St. Paul, MN 55104
http://www.cchconline.org
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CONTACT:Twila Brase, R.N., President
PHONE: 651-646-8935
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Ten Tips for Finding the 'Uninsurance' in
Health Insurance Policies

St. Paul, Minnesota - The sense of security felt by those with health insurance should be tempered with an informed dose of reality, according to Citizens' Council on Health Care (CCHC), a Minnesota-based health care policy organization.

"With increasing frequency, the insured are finding themselves in the unhappy shoes of the uninsured. Although they have an insurance policy, an insurance ID number, and proof of premium payments, health coverage is all too often unavailable without the say-so of the insurer," says Twila Brase, R.N., President of CCHC.

To help the public learn about the limitations of coverage within health insurance policies they hold or are considering for purchase, CCHC has developed a document called: "Finding Coverage Gaps in Health Insurance Policies: Ten Tips."

The document includes ten actions to be taken and a brief description of why each action is recommended. Actions include:

1) Request a copy of the entire insurance contract and read it before you purchase the policy.
2) Identify exceptions to the rule before you become sick.
3) Realize that all staff at a network-approved hospital may not be part of the network - and therefore not covered by your policy.
4) Call the network's clinics and doctors before you purchase a policy - to verify that they are still in the network or will take new patients.
5) Carefully read the criteria for determining medical necessity.

"Too many people get their policy and stuff it into a drawer until they become sick - or after the bills start to arrive. Then and only then do they read it. That's a mistake. The most important action a person can take is to know in advance what is and is not covered, to know how coverage decisions are made and to know what actions individuals must take for coverage to be obtained in any given situation," says Brase.

DOCUMENT ONLINE AT: http://www.cchc-mn.org/issues/finding.php3

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CCHC is an independent non-profit free-market health care policy organization located in St. Paul, Minnesota
 

ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE.  THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.