|
HMO or PPO: Which is Best for Your Family |
| Print |
|
E-mail
|
Shopping for health insurance? You aren’t alone. Many people are not happy with their current health care plan, and don’t really know what their options are. But with a little research, your choice can become clearer.
According to Consumer Reports, the non profit consumer advocate, the average satisfaction level of 42,000 readers with their managed care plan was 73 percent. That’s lower than the level of reported satisfaction with homeowners insurance or car insurance.
One of the main choices you will need to make is which basic service is right for your family: a Health Maintenance Organization (HMO), or a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO). HMOs offer plans that pay almost all expenses for patients who use providers within a network, while PPO plans often cost more but allow for more doctor choice. The best plans provide good doctors and easier access to care.
Consumer Reports also found that there was no difference between HMOs and PPOs in levels of satisfaction among people with chronic conditions, except for people with back pain and arthritis. These people preferred PPOs. On the other hand, billing and customer service problems are more common to PPOs.
Patient’s overall satisfaction was determined by six factors: difficulty getting care that patients and their doctors felt was necessary, choice of doctors, difficulty getting to see doctors, quality of customer support, frequency of billing problems, and satisfaction with the primary-care physician.
Other considerations you might have are how the plan might handle a chronic illness, whether your particular health problem, such as weight loss or smoking cessation, are targeted, and whether you are seeking alternative medicine treatments such as chiropractic visits.
There is plenty of information and more plan comparisons at Consumer Reports.
Take a little time to compare the different plans, and what your particular needs are, and you can make an informed choice for you and your family.
|
Health 
