I’ve never gotten health insurance before. I am afraid of getting scammed or stuck. Where do I start?
I googled health insurance and am aware there are private companies, but the websites that offer to sell the plans end in .gov and I don’t qualify for government aid, or just give phone numbers, it all seems so sketchy to me. Also, how do plans work? I know I have to pay a monthly bill, but is it like car insurance? I know how car insurance works.
Where do I go? A website? Can I go directly to a private company’s website and submit the required information? Which plans are good for a dependent student? I am dependent on my parents but they are divorced. My dad told me I can’t go on his because he got remarried recently and sharing a plan with his wife, and my mom said I can’t go on hers because she’s moved to a different state. I also don’t want to be on her insurance whenever she comes back because she can be nosy and knowledge of my medical activity will give her leverage over my life if she chooses.
I am a part time student, part time job holder. I live alone, but in my mom’s apartment until august. I applied for medicaid but got denied. I’m healthy and young (19 almost 20) with no underlying conditions. I’m looking for a cheap health care just in case I get sick and need a doctors note, and to cover a copper IUD (I want the most effective birth control possible, especially in light of recent events, I live in a state that is very likely to restrict abortion). Ideally, I would like dental cleanings covered, and wishfully thinking, maybe some mental health appointments covered. But my basic doc and birth control are technically my only necessities.
Are all these too much to ask for, with a college student’s budget? How do I find out which plans cover which appointments and prescriptions (for example what if I get an infection and need a week’s worth of antibiotics)? I read that a three day hospital stay was 30,000 out of pocket, and to fix a broken leg was 7,000, will health insurance cover emergencies like those? How does one “shop” for health insurance?
Any information at all would be helpful, thank you.
Edit: my age 19, zip code 32792, income 9,000/year maybe
