Medical supply companies in general are very profitable enterprises. However, most medical supply companies operate on a very tight cash flow. Unfortunately, the challenging billing procedures and slow payment cycles of insurance companies, HMOs and Medicare/Medicaid create a situation where many companies wait 30 to 60 days before getting paid.

Cash flow can get even tighter if the company’s sales grow, or if the owners decide to open new locations. When this happens, most company owners try to obtain bank financing through a loan or line of credit. However, qualifying for bank financing is incredibly challenging as they will only lend money to a business that shows profits for three straight years and can provide audited financials.

There is a financing alternative in the healthcare industry that has been used with success with medical supply companies. This solution provides you with quick financing based exclusively on your sales. Furthermore, since financing is tied to sales, the line of financing grows as your sales grow. The solution is to factor your medical insurance claims using medical receivables factoring.

Medical factoring provides you with immediate financing based on your slow paying insurance and Medicare/Medicaid claims. Rather than waiting 30 to 60 days to get paid, with medical factoring you can get paid in a few days. This frees up significant cash, allowing you to finance operations, and more importantly, to buy supplies and fuel new sales.

As opposed to bank financing, where the bank lends you money, the factoring company buys your invoices and pays you immediately for them. The process is fairly straightforward. But more importantly, this also means that you are free from the traditional bank lending requirements. Medical receivables factoring is easier to qualify for, and often, the owners’ personal credit is not a consideration.

Factoring your medical receivables can be an ideal solution for your medical supply company if your main challenge is that you cannot afford to wait up to 60 days to get paid by insurance companies. If that is the case, medical factoring should provide you with the working capital you need to operate and grow your business.

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The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 created prescription drug coverage for all Medicare beneficiaries. This coverage went into effect January 1st of 2006. What is Medicare Part D and how do make the most of your prescription drug coverage?

As of January 2006, there are three components to Medicare. These components are Part A (Hospitalization Insurance), Part B (Medical Insurance), and Part D (Prescription Drug Coverage). Prescription drug coverage under Medicare works like any other Prescription drug insurance on the market today.

When you enroll in Medicare Part D you are signing up with a private insurance company appointed by Medicare to administer your plan. Part D providers and their plan offerings vary by region. There are dozens of providers and even more plans to choose from; all of these plans cover prescriptions differently and not all of them may cover the medicines you take.

How do you know which plan to sign up for? First, start by making a list of all the medication you take. List it by the medication’s name, brand versus generic, and how often you take it. Next, contact Medicare at their toll free number: 1-800-633-4227, and ask them for a list of Part D providers in your area.

You will receive a list of private insurance companies appointed by Medicare to administer Part D plans in your area. Finally, you will need to contact each of these insurance companies with the list of medications you prepared earlier. You need to shop around for the best deal for all the medications you take. You are looking for a plan with the lowest monthly premium that covers all the medications you are taking, and offers the greatest flexibility of coverage. This is not an easy task.

If you find the process overwhelming a Medicare representative can talk you through the process. When trying to make sense of the new changes to Medicare remember the old cliché: “What’s the best way to eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” Start by making your list of medications and calling Medicare today.

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If, for one reason or another, you end up without access to group insurance coverage through an employer, all is not lost. You have the option to purchase an individual health policy from a private insurance company. Although individual medical insurance may be expensive, it’s worth investigating the options.

Coverage availability and premiums will vary from state to state. It may depend on whether or not your particular state has enacted laws that prohibit the rate modification based on your medical condition.

For instance, the state of New York, health insurers that offer individual health coverage may not turn down a candidate because of poor health. Nor can they base their premiums on factors such as gender, occupation, age or health status. New York enjoys what is called community rating. Premiums are based on how many individuals in the family and in what part of the state you live.

However, in a state like Texas, insurers may deny coverage on the basis of poor health and are allowed to adjust the premium based on the very same factors of gender, occupation, age or health status. Conceivably, a healthy person in the state of Texas may pay less in premiums than a healthy New Yorker, because the Texan’s premium will be adjusted to reflect positive health status.

Some states, such as Washington are a hybrid of New York and Texas. So, when looking for individual health insurance you should take a good look at the current insurance reforms in your state.

On a national level, however, the elderly pay a higher premium than younger insured do. The higher rate is a reflection of the rather predictable increase in medical expense that occurs as we age.

Before you actually contact an agent or an insurance company, you should first contact your state’s insurance department to get information regarding current laws that may affect your individual health insurance coverage plan.

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There are several important choices and options to consider when looking for the best coverage and the least expensive senior medical insurance and financial assistance—annuities, health insurance, disability insurance, long term care insurance, and life insurance.

Annuities are insurance products that provide income immediately or in the future. The purchaser pays at least one premium, and in turn the insurance company provides income to the purchaser. There are several different varieties of annuities, the two widest groups being immediate (those that supply income right away) and deferred (those that supply income at a later date). Annuities are beneficial for many seniors as they aren’t able to work to earn their own income.

Health insurance is important for everyone to have—not just seniors. Health insurance can pay a part or even sometimes the whole of medical costs, rather than leaving the senior or senior’s family to pay the costs.

Disability insurance is available for those who meet the social securities criteria for having a medical disability and aren’t able to work for a year or longer because of the medical disability. Since many seniors fall into this category and qualifying for disability insurance is a long process, it should be applied for immediately upon discovering its need.

Long term care insurance covers two main groups—the elderly (seniors) and those with debilitating illnesses and diseases. With long term care insurance, costs for long term care will be covered rather than paid out of pocket by the senior or the senior’s family.

Life insurance, just like health insurance, is a wise investment for everyone and not just seniors. In the unfortunate event of death, life insurance can help cover medical costs that still exist, rather than leave them for the surviving family to pay.

Everyone needs medical insurance of some sort; however, it makes sense for seniors to look into other forms of insurance and reliable financial assistance as well.

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We love our children. From the moment we realize they are making their way into this world, we begin making plans for them. We want the best of everything for them, from homes and communities to schools and activities. We strive to raise them in safe, healthy, nurturing environments in hopes that they will grow into and remain safe, healthy, nurturing adults throughout their lives.

Child medical insurance must be included in our plans for our children. Children are constantly growing and exploring. They are active little people who spend a lot of time running, tumbling, playing sports, and creating potentially dangerous little games of their own. Plus, classrooms full of children are perfect breeding grounds during the cold and flu season. If your daughter’s best friend has a cold, you can safely bet that your daughter will have the sniffles within a few days, too. Inevitably our children will get sick, hurt, need medicine or x-rays once in a while or even more often!

The health and safety of our children is our most important goal. Unfortunately, sometimes we find ourselves in situations when our jobs don’t offer medical insurance. It is easier to tell ourselves “not right now” when it comes to treating a medical problem, but it is not that easy to tell our children “not right now” when they are running a dangerously high fever and ask us to help them feel better.

If you do not have medical insurance covered by your place of employment, or you are covered by medical insurance you purchase yourself, you need to stop and think about the medical insurance of your child. If you are not covered, or can not afford medical insurance for yourself or your child, there are agencies out there that will help you. You can find affordable, and sometimes even free, child medical insurance that will cover dental, vision, and health costs for your child.

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We all need medical insurance coverage. Although we can not always predict when we are going to need it, we can almost be sure that at some point we are going to need it. Whether you pride yourself in rarely ever getting sick, or you have an illness or condition that you will deal with for life, medical insurance coverage just makes sense.

Whether you are choosing to purchase medical insurance coverage independently or are choosing from a variety of policies available through your employer, you want to choose the policy that best fits your needs. Your medical insurance policy will list benefits such as treatment services, medications, and medical tests and screenings. It will also list services that are not covered. If you are purchasing medical insurance coverage for the first time, or thinking about changing your coverage or provider, do not just choose the cheapest medical insurance coverage. Make sure to take into consideration the benefits available, especially benefits that you already know you are going to need—doing so could quite possibly help you if surprises show up down the road, as well.

Most often your doctor will familiarize him or herself with your medical insurance coverage in order to provide you with the best care for which you are covered. Coverage can be tricky sometimes and your doctor may not be aware of, or able to remember, everything, so you should still make sure that you understand your coverage in order to help.

Even if your doctor is familiar with your medical insurance coverage, he or she may need to recommend treatments or services that are not covered in your policy. If this happens, your insurance provider will probably deny the claim. You have the option of appealing the claim, but you need to know your provider’s appeal policy before you do so. Always try be prepared for extra out-of-pocket expenses for these kinds of occurrences.

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Many individuals work full-time with no benefits, cannot afford medical insurance on their own or simply are unable to find a job that offers medical care. For many, free clinics are their only chance for medical treatment. Available to both children and adults, free clinics are located throughout the United States and commonly found in largely populated cities. Smaller, local free clinics are found in virtually every area and are the only forms of medical treatment for some children and their families.

The lack of medical insurance is a problem that affects many workers. When an unfortunate event arises, such as a sudden illness or injury, it can wipe out a family’s savings instantly. While free clinics primarily offer general care and not surgical procedures, they are essential in helping the patient to determine if more extensive medical treatment may be required. In addition to testing, free clinics may also provide check-ups, immunizations and other common medical procedures.

The best way to locate free clinics is to inquire with the local health department as to the nearest facility. As patients can expect, free clinics are very busy. As such, appointments are typically recommended if at all possible. In the case of an emergency, free clinics may be able to assist a patient or may direct them to the nearest emergency care facility. Early appointments are preferred with patients calling ahead at least one week in advance in order to confirm treatment. In the case of a sudden cold or flu onset, some free clinics have the ability to accept patients on a walk-in basis. This is completely dependant upon the schedule and the number of patients with appointments, but there is always the possibility of receiving treatment as a walk-in patient.

The treatments provided at free clinics are often those conducted by qualified medical students, who are under close supervision by a licensed medical doctor. In exchange for the educational experience to students, a number of medical schools provide free clinics to patients without medical insurance or the income to afford paid medical care.

The information in this article is to be used for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be used in conjunction with, or in place of, professional medical advice. Patients who feel that they require ongoing care, which free clinics may not be able to provide, should consult their nearest hospital or medical center for proper diagnosis and treatments of their ailment.

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Health insurance that provides benefits for major illness and injury is known as Major Medical Insurance. Usually characterized by a large benefit maximum ranging up to $5,000,000.00, or no limit. This insurance, above an initial deductible, reimburses the major part of charges for hospital, doctor, private nurses, medical appliances, prescribed out-of-hospital treatment, drugs, and medicines and may contain limits on specific types of charges, like room and board. These policies usually pay covered expenses whether an individual is in or out of the hospital.
Why do you need Medical Insurance?
Today, health care costs are high, and getting higher. Who will pay your bills if you have a serious accident or a major illness? You buy health insurance for the same reason you buy other kinds of insurance, to protect yourself financially. With health insurance, you protect yourself and your family in case you need medical care that could be very expensive. You can’t predict what your medical bills will be. In a good year, your costs may be low. But if you become ill, your bills could be very high. If you have insurance, many of your costs are covered by a third-party payer, not by you. A third-party payer can be an insurance company or, in some cases, it can be your employer.
Where Do People get Medical Insurance Coverage?
Most Americans get health insurance through their jobs or are covered because a family member has insurance at work. This is called group insurance. Group insurance is generally the least expensive kind. In many cases, the employer pays part or all of the cost.
Some employers offer only one health insurance plan. Some offer a choice of plans: a fee-for-service plan, a health maintenance organization (HMO), or a preferred provider organization (PPO), for example.
What does this type of Medical Insurance cover?
Such programs provide low cost health insurance coverage to uninsured, low income pregnant women and their infants. It also provides low cost health, dental and vision coverage to uninsured children in low wage families. Families participating in the program choose their health, dental and vision plan. Families pay premiums of $4-$15 per child per month (maximum of $45 per family) to participate in the program.
How to choose the Medical or Health Insurance?
There are many different types of health insurance. Each has pros and cons. There is no one “best” plan. The plan that’s right for a single person may not be best for a family with small children. And a plan that works for one family may not be right for another.
Choosing a health insurance plan is like making any other major purchase: You choose the plan that meets both your needs and your budget. For most people, this means deciding which plan is worth the cost. Cost isn’t the only thing to consider when buying health insurance. You also need to consider what benefits are covered. You need to compare plans carefully for both cost and coverage.

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If you want to get a good deal on your medical insurance, there are a couple of things you should consider doing. Some of them are optional and some of them are absolutely vital and cannot be passed by.

The first is to shop around. You really cannot get a good deal on medical insurance unless you are prepared to shop around and search the market. Finding out what is available on the market really is the only way you can know if any particular offer is good or not and whether or not you should accept it. By getting to know what kind of offers are out there, you will know what you should be expecting to pay for what kind of benefits and are far less likely to get ripped off by making an uninformed decision on which medical insurance to buy.

You should also consider speaking to an insurance broker. These will be able to advise you on the plans offered by a wide range of insurers and let you know what kind of offers are available. Therefore, they can save you a lot of the legwork of shopping around since they have access to an array of insurance companies. They will also have access to preferential rates and deals since they can bargain with companies and use their knowledge of the industry to get good deals. They can then pass these savings on to you in some form or another.

However, even if you are going through a broker, you cannot forgo shopping around and informing yourself properly of what is on the market. This is because you will not be sure if the offer the broker is giving you is any better than that of other brokers or even of prices you can find your self.

Shopping online is another good idea. The Internet gives you access to virtually all the insurers in the market. They are right there at your fingertips and can often give you instant quotes right there on the website. This means that you can do a lot of shopping around and get a good idea of what is on the market just be going on line and visiting their websites.

Medical insurance is a very important purchase for you and your family. It can determine the level of health care and service you will have access to in the case of an accident or serious illness and also represents a significant cost to you when you pay your premiums. Therefore you should always shop the market and make sure you are getting as good a deal as possible before you commit to any one policy.

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Health insurance plans have been forced to take action to contain costs of quality health care delivery as health care costs have skyrocketed. Health insurance premiums, deductibles and co-pays have steadily increased, and health insurance companies have implemented certain strategies for reducing health care costs. “Managed care” describes a group of stratgies aimed at reducing the costs of health care for health insurance companies.

There are two basic types of managed care plans; health maintenance organizations, or HMOs, and preferred provider organizations, or PPOs. So which health plan is best? How do you choose what type of health insurance best suits the health care needs of you and your family?

Both HMOs and PPOs contain costs by contracting with health providers for reduced rate on health care services for its’ members, often as much as 60%. One important difference between HMOs and PPOs is that PPOs often will cover the costs of care when the provider is out of their network, but usually at a reduced rate. On the other hand, most HMOs offer no coverage for health care services for out-of-network providers.

Both HMO and PPOs also control health care costs by use of a gateway, or primary care provider (PCP). Health insurance plan members are assigned (or select) a primary care practitioner (physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner). usually a family practitioner or internal medicine doctor for adult members or a pediatrician or family care practitioner for childern. The primary care provider is responsible for coordianting health delivery for plan members. Care by specialist physicians require referral from the primary care provider. This cost containment strategy is intended to avoid duplication of services (for example, the cardiologist ordering tests that have already been done by the PCP, or a sprained ankle being referred to an orthopedic) and avoid unnecessary specialist referrals, tests and/or procedures.

HMO and PPO plans also contain costs by requiring prior approval, prior authorization, or pre-certification for many elective hospital admissions, surgeries, costly tests and imaging procedures, durable medical equipment and prescription drugs. When such services are required, the provider must submit a request to the health insurance plan review department, along with medical records that justify the service. The request is reviewed by the health insurance company to determine whether the services are justified as “medically necessary” according to the health plan policy and guidelines. Review is usually performed by licensed nurses, and, if the reviewer agrees that the service is necessary, approval is given and the service will be covered by the health insurance plan.

As health care costs continue to rise, many indemnity health insurance plans, or “fee for service” plans are being forced to adopt some managed care strategies in order to provide quality health care and keep health insurance premiums affordable. And as long as health care costs continue to rise, the distinctions among PPO, HMO, FFS and other health insurance plans will become blurred. Rest assured, however, that managed health care is here to stay.

Kay Lowe holds a Master’s degree in health care and has 30+ years experience in the health care field.

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