AIA Chiangmai

Money makes the world go round, as they say, and while the whole world is full of those crisp or wilted paper bills it seems that they like to slip right through our hands so quickly.

People who know how to make a dollar or two with ease enter the world of finance, which is the business of managing your money and your other assets. If you’ve got a bank account, finance is involved.

If you’re considering an investment to support your future, you’re thinking in terms of finance. Maybe it’s on our minds 24/7. After all, we need money to survive, and most of our lives is spent on making it. Not just stockbrokers or bankers or investors, the so-called money-jugglers of society.

The thing is, finance is really for everyone. If you’ve got money, then you have to involve your brain in the act of finance or money-managing to get the most bang for your buck. Otherwise, you will splurge and you will wonder where in the world the money went.

The best time to start learning about finance is the time you start to receive money. Think about it. When you received a check in the mail from your grandma as your birthday present, weren’t you already thinking of what you were going to spend it all on?

That is the essence of finance, although that very act may have been insensible and financially disagreeable; hey, you were just a kid, after all.

Maybe you were a smart kid, one who knew how money goes. Maybe you’ve stashed it in your secret hiding place. Maybe you started to go into business by selling lemonade (although maybe you drank more than half of it too). Maybe you gave some away to your favorite charity. Yup, that was finance too. We all know better now, don’t we?

It hasn’t changed much; we go out to make money, we spend some, we save some, until we have enough to make a couple of major purchases such as homes or vacations. Only we know a bit more. And we’ve understood more of the finance jargon that sometimes rolls on the tongue.

Investments. Assets. Loans. Benefits. Mortgage. Insurance. Knowlege is power, as they say, and knowledge on how to finance will lead you to finance greater amounts of money in the future. So study up. Take finance management classes. Follow the stock market. Listen in on discussions.

Finance also includes self-discipline. Sometimes you have to keep yourself from small pleasures in order to attain the bigger more important things. Finance means that you need to set your priorities straight. Sacrifice may seem like a lot at the moment but the end will justify the means.

Finance is planning ahead. For your future. For your future’s future. For your financial safety and stability. Because it is a very difficult thing to get by in this world without the proper resources. It is preparation for the unknown. Managing your finances mean decreasing the number of worry lines on your face.

So if you’ve got money, if you’re planning to make money, or if you’re thinking about money, well then, you’re thinking about finance. Just keep in mind not just to think about finance, but to think about it wisely, too.

James Monahan is the owner and Senior Editor of
FinanceWebs.com and writes expert
articles about finances.

Tags: assets, benefits, Finance, insurance, investments, Loans, mortgageassets, benefits, Finance, insurance, investments, Loans, mortgage

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Short term insurance costs less than traditional major medical insurance plans. However short term insurance has limitations that need to be considered before purchasing. One major limitation is the fact that short term insurance does not cover pre-existing conditions. Pre-existing condition is defined as any medical condition that was diagnosed or treated prior to the effective date of the short term insurance plan.

For example, if an individual has been taking high blood pressure medicine prior to taking out a short term insurance plan, the high blood pressure would be considered a pre-existing condition. In this case any treatment including medicine and doctor’s office visits for high blood pressure would not be covered due to its status as a pre-existing condition. Any new condition would be covered under the new short term insurance plan. This is one reason that short term insurance costs less than traditional health plans.

Short term insurance is a good alternative to more expensive plans in many cases. Healthy students graduating could save money and maintain catastrophic medical coverage with a short term insurance plan during the time they try to find employment with health benefits. People between jobs may find short term insurance more affordable than COBRA benefits as well. Short term insurance also satisfies a need for people on a restrictive HMO who travel outside of the coverage area on vacation.

If you think that short term insurance might be a more affordable option for you or your family’s needs, ask your local agent or go to sites like http://www.short-termhealthinsurance.com for information, quotes, and applications. Remember that short term insurance generally does not cover pre-existing conditions when considering this option. If that is not a concern for you, you could save a significant amount of money with short term insurance for your temporary medical benefit needs.

http://www.thackeragency.com
http://www.short-termhealthinsurance.com
Brian Thacker uses the internet to allow his visitors to have the experience of an agent without the hassle of one. Call the agency toll free if you have questions about anything concerning insurance and insurance related products 866-373-4948

Tags: benefits, health, insurance, medical, plans, short, temporary, termbenefits, health, insurance, medical, plans, short, temporary, term

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Imagine your horror when you discover your emergency surgery is not covered by your health insurance. You have no idea what to do. AND you’re a recovering patient!

The moral is that if you, or your company for you, purchased a health insurance policy more than five years ago, it would be prudent to review your benefits. You might find quite a few very unpleasant surprises. Wouldn’t it be better to know now rather than later, when you need your benefits and it’s too late to make changes.

The costs for medical services have soared. Many of the benefit amounts in health insurance policies do not cover the current charges.

I recently learned of a case where the patient bought his policy many years ago when medical costs were far less than they are now. His policy stated that his coverage for anesthesia services was one-third of the surgeon’s fee. Meanwhile, the cost of anesthesia services has greatly increased.

The maximum or “cap” in his policy was $1,000, leaving him with a significant - unexpected - out-of-pocket amount for the anesthesia service.

This same patient also found that his deductible was not an annual charge. He learned that he would have to pay the sizeable deductible for each medical event and/or procedure. Unfortunately, he found this fact right before his surgery, too late to make any changes in the policy.

He also found that lab charges would not be covered at all. His policy states that the cost of lab work would not be paid if it is billed from a site outside the hospital; only lab charges billed from the hospital itself were covered. Nowadays, many hospitals outsource some of their services and patients are stuck with more out-of-pocket charges.

Had this patient carefully read through his policy - and done so annually to remind himself - perhaps he could have made changes in his plan to better protect himself.

If your policy is through your company, they likely have an annual Open Enrollment period during which you can make changes to your health insurance plan. Use this annual event as the time for reviewing your policy.

Another reminder: check the pre-authorization, or pre-certification, requirements in your policy. This means calling the insurance company, describing what’s going to happen, and receiving approval for the procedure prior to the actual procedure. Often the physician’s office will handle this step. Make sure that it occurs.

Keep good records of your conversations. Note the date, the time, to whom you spoke, and what was said. Until you know for certain, assume any medical treatment requires pre-certification (often called “pre-cert”).

I hope this information has encouraged you to review your health insurance policy at least annually. You surely don’t want the financial surprises this patient found.

After fighting her own health insurance company, Leland Draper founded The Draper Forum to assist clients as an advocate for Georgia citizens regarding medical insurance. She deals with claims departments and agencies, overseeing claims, including Medicare, Explanations of Benefits, and supplemental policies. On behalf of the client, she copes with physicians’ offices, service agencies, hospitals as well as auxiliary labs and services. She provides this service for her clients because managing, on your own, the chaotic muddle of bills and insurance paperwork is emotionally exhausting and can affect recovery.
Ms. Draper can be reached at http://www.thedraperforum.com and at mld99@juno.com.

Tags: benefits, charges, costs, health, insurance, patient, policy, review, surgerybenefits, charges, costs, health, insurance, patient, policy, review, surgery

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