health answers:

First you will need to determine which is primary. But you really haven’t given enough info in your question. If one is yours (say through an employer) and the other is your spouse’s (through her employer), then yours is primary for you and hers will be secondary. BUT if one is yours through an employer and one is an individual policy that you pay for, you will have to look at the individual policy to see, if it coordinates with any other policy or if it pays you directly.

For the most part, Humana will only cover services supplied by Humana providers, except in the case of an emergency. (Much like Kaiser). You don’t say what type of policy the Aetna is-HMO-PPO? Whatever carrier has the better benefit for the service you receive, you will need to follow their guideline for payment. E.G.-pre-authorization, authorization, referral by Primary Care Doctor to get full benefit coverage. Chances are if the primary pays 80%, the secondary will not pick up any balance UNLESS their benefit as primary was more than 80%.

So you may want to consider the cost of the premium for the secondary policy versus the actual benefits paid. It may not be worth it unless there is a benefit that you need or use that one does not cover and the other does (like chiropractic).

This can get complicated, check with your employer’s human resources staff – they might have some advise and you can always talk to your primary insurer, too.

health answers:

It depends on the individual, their level of experience and their job duties.

health answers:

Http://pfp.humana.com/ProviderPFP/MarketFinder.asp

health answers:

~~The deductible is what you are required to pay out of your pocket annually after the insurance pays their potion of the cost.

There are so many variable in health care plans, but one example in which you may fit is when the health insurance pays a percentage of the prescription cost and you pay the rest until your deductible is met.

To change from your plan is not possible. What you would have to do is apply all over again for a different plan – and you may have to wait until the annual renewable period. Only good thing is you could then choose a different company.

Another possibility is that your prescription was somehow switched from a generic to a brand name drug (thus the higher cost) or maybe the generic is no longer available. The drug may have been changed from a Tier 1 to a Tier 2 drug category – where Tier 2’s are more expensive.

If that is the case, or something similar has happened, your doctor can often get the “brand name expense” waived so you go back to paying the normal co-pay amount. Your doctor might, for example, request that a Tier 2 drug be categorized as Tier 1 because of your medical circumstances.

Good Luck.

health answers:

The both have very good policies, according to my insurance agent.

They’ll need to do their homework because the cheaper policies from both companies are not as comprehensive as the ones with the higher premiums, which means they have fewer benefits. Your brother and sister-in-law should visit a local independent agent. The agent knows the market in your area and can find the best policy for their situation and budget and might recommend a different company. The agent can explain the benefits of the policies to make sure they’re getting what they want. The plans and the premiums are exactly the same using the agent as they are buying from the company directly.