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Health insurance market sure looks confusing to those who have to deal with it for the first time in their life. But as with anything that seems complicated at first, health insurance is quite easy to understand when you take some time to learn the basics of it. Of course, don’t expect to become an insurance market specialist overnight but the following tips will certainly help those inexperienced with health insurance shopping to get a decent policy for a fair price.

What you can get?

Individual insurance plans – the most common option for people with normal income, especially those who aren’t offered with group insurance by their employers. The vast majority of insurance companies offer such policies and the diversity of coverage options is very wide here. However, make sure to learn what are the requirements in your state and check if the insurance company is licensed in your area before getting the plan.

High risk pools – some pre-existing conditions will make it hard for you to get typical individual health insurance. That’s where high risk pools may come in handy. Such plans are available only in certain states, so make sure to learn if there are any in your area. If yes, then it would be a good option for those who are considered to be a high risk policy-holder. The rates are relatively high here, but for some it may be the only option for adequate coverage.

HIPAA coverage – this type of insurance best appeals to those who have been recently dropped of employer sponsored group coverage and don’t fall under COBRA coverage too. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act health insurance can be purchased in any state and is particularly useful to those who have pre-existing conditions. Thus, it’s a good alternative to high risk pools or an option where the pools are unavailable. Speak to your insurance agent to decide which option is better for you.

Where you can get it?

Insurance agents – these are independent individuals that provide health insurance quotes and plans from numerous companies. Each insurance agent has his own selection of companies he provides services of, and if there are any question he is the person to ask. However, first make sure that the agent you’re speaking with is licensed to work in your area before getting any services or signing policy contracts. You can do that at your state’s insurance department.

Department of insurance – while not being a direct seller of health insurance, the state insurance department can give you valuable information on local agents and providers you can buy from safely. If there are any complaints about any particular provider, this is the place to learn about them.

Online sellers – the recent trend in many insurance companies going online, as well as the development of independent sources can be a very helpful and easily accessible source of information regarding health insurance. It is very easy to get health insurance quotes online with these sites and shopping for a plan takes you only a couple of minutes.

Health insurance spendings account for a large part of business activity costs, and their share is especially large with small businesses and home-based enterprises. And with the continuous trends in rates increase it’s getting harder and harder for small enterprises to carry this burden, causing many small businesses to drop health coverage benefits altogether.

A recent study conducted by the Commonwealth Fund in New York has concluded that small businesses tend to pay 18% more for health insurance than their larger counterparts all across the country. That’s because large enterprises have a better negotiating power due to larger numbers of workers to be insured. Having that in mind, being despaired about the thing won’t help your small business much. About 60% of 46 million people in the US who have no health insurance coverage are employed by small enterprises and these numbers keep on growing. Such tendencies are no good news for small businesses, because qualified and better workers tend to pay much attention to health benefits at the enterprise and not having them decrease your chance of attracting workers who will help develop your business better.

In order to cope with the Catch 22 situation here, you have to learn how to minimize your healthcare costs and provide your employees with the benefits they deserve. Here are some tips on how to get exactly what you need:

1. Keep the workers healthy. Instead of fighting the consequences and paying for costly medical coverage, you can invest into your workers’ health and promote different wellness programs at your business. Introduce regular screenings, check-ups and promote a healthy lifestyle by offering your employees free gym sessions or other benefits. It’s much easier to prevent a disease rather than treat it.

2. Lower the coverage. Larger coverage amounts lead to higher premiums and a logical solution for this would be lowering the coverage. You can also ask your employees to partially contribute to the premiums if they want to keep the initial coverage amounts. Of course, this would be quite unpopular among your employees but if your small business insurance plan is in question you have to consider going with such unpopular measures.

3. Think about HSAs. Health savings accounts are gaining popularity amongst small business owners as they provide more flexibility and tax benefits than typical health insurance options. HSAs combine high-deductible health insurance plans with tax-free savings accounts, making the premiums you have to pay lower, and providing more saving options to your employees. And the fact that all withdrawals are tax-free makes it a great option for those who want to get great small business insurance health coverage without constraining the enterprise’s budget.

4. Team up with other small businesses. You can join an association or buying union who other local small businesses in order to gain better rates. Such associations provide small enterprises the bargain power of big companies because when combined, such groups have a large number of employees to be insured which eventually leads to more competitive premiums compared to going off alone. Member fees are usually quite low with such groups while the benefits are great, so think about joining one of you have in your area. This might give you good rates on other forms of small business insurance as well.