While it’s nice to know that health insurance like Medicare pays for medical expenses, just what kind of expenses are covered? Where did the concept of health insurance come from anyhow? Interesting questions; and perhaps the answers, in the short form of how we got health insurance might give you an idea.
One thing to note is that the term health insurance in the 21st has a much wider scope than it ever used to have when it was first implemented. For example, sometimes Medicare health insurance these days covers disability costs, custodial care and long-term nursing. In fact, health insurance policies are now offered through government-sponsored programs and private insurance companies. While there are a wide range of policies available to suit just about any need, those who have them need to pay premiums to keep them in force. Without policy payment a senior would be unable afford medical care.
However, on the other side of the fence are policies such as Medicaid, funded by the government for those in need of medical care, but who can’t afford to pay for a Medicare policy or Medicare supplemental plan. That’s what Americans live with today when dealing with their health care system.
Health insurance plans themselves first made an appearance thanks to a man called Hugh the Elder Chamberlen, who proposed health care insurance in 1694. Some of the very first policies developed over the years were accidental health insurance plans (a 19th century) innovation, very much a cousin to today’s disability insurance.
History has it that accidental insurance was first brought to the US by the Franklin Health Insurance Company of Massachusetts that opened its doors in 1850. What were they selling? Insurance against injury accidents on steamboats and railroads. Fast forward to 1966 and over 60 companies offered this type of insurance. The problem here was that other than this kind of insurance, Medicare clients had to pay for all other medical bills. Back to the drawing board.
It wasn’t until the late 20th century that we began to see the first inklings of modern health insurance the way we know it. Of course it went through many different evolutions until modern Medicare arrived on the scene, but over time it began to cover a lot more prescription drugs, emergency health care procedures and preventative medicine.
Nowadays we have more to offer people aside from the original Medicare policies. Now you can get Medicare supplement plans, also called Medigap policies. These are supplementary health insurance policies sold by private insurance companies. Keep in mind that these Medicare policies are not independent and are kissing cousins with original Medicare. Supplements close the gap between policy coverage offered by the original Medicare plans and what you actually have to fork out in medical expenses.
Ultimately, no matter what kind of Medicare coverage you choose, read the fine print and find out just exactly what you are getting in terms of coverage. No sense finding out later, when you need insurance, that your policy doesn’t cover what you thought it did.
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